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Russell Simmons on CNN: Christians Bombed the WTC in 1993?

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

Russell Simmons, founder of the hip-hop label Def Jam, bizarrely and inaccurately claimed during an interview on Wednesday’s Larry King Live on CNN that perpetrators behind the first World Trade Center attack in 1993 were Christians: ” If you’re blaming Muslims for the attack on 9/11, then you need to change your mind. We didn’t- did we blame Christians at the first World Trade attack? We didn’t ” . Host Larry King brought on Simmons to discuss the controversy over the New York City mosque near Ground Zero. He appeared immediately after an interview of New York Governor David Paterson, who attempted to negotiate with the planners behind the mosque in order to get its site moved. King first asked the entrepreneur to respond to the governor’s efforts. He unequivocally supported the proposed worship space: ” We should make every effort not to move it . I think it’s critical that we recognize that we built this country on religious tolerance and on religious freedom. And so, if we want to penalize the two billion Muslims because of the actions of a few, then we have to examine the way we look at each other and all religions. So I think it would be a terrible idea to move the mosque .” Later, during the second segment of the interview, King played a clip of former House Speaker Newt Gingrich expressing his opposition to the proposed mosque, and prompted Simmons to respond. The “hip-hop pioneer,” as the CNN host earlier labeled him, lamented not only the Speaker’s opposition, but the wider opposition to the project in general, and proceeded to make his false claim: SIMMONS: Well, I’m sorry he feels that way. It’s sad in this day and time that Americans who built this country on interfaith respect and dialogue would think that- he could think that, and- I’m sorry, not only that he thinks that, that he has support . It’s very- it’s saddening that we have this kind of belief system….The fact is we were attacked by al Qaeda, and not by Islam, and the fact is, there are hundreds of millions of law-abiding, respectful Muslims, and American Muslims are respectful, and they build this country, and they’re an important part of this country, and if we can’t respect them, then we don’t deserve the respect that we can’t give them. We don’t- in other words what we give to others is what we get for ourselves, and there’s- it’s a terrible state that we’re in, that we can have this kind of discussion. That we’re even talking about this. Again, it was not politicized for years. They’ve been working on this for a long time, and the fact that they’re making- that there is such opposition, and there’s so many people who have lost people in the World Trade [Center], who are supportive of this, and they’re not being promoted. There’s a lot of dialogue about some people are sensitive and who- but, again, like I said, if you are- if you’re blaming Muslims, then you need to change your mind. If you’re blaming Muslims for the attack on 9/11, then you need to change your mind. We didn’t- did we blame Christians at the first World Trade attack? We didn’t, and I think it’s insane and it’s wrong-headed. It creates a negative- cycle of negativity . One wonders if he was thinking about the Oklahoma City bombing, which was perpetrated by a Catholic-turned-agnostic. In any case, the World Trade Center bombing in 1993 was committed by Ramzi Yousef , the nephew of 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, who was aided by several other Islamic radicals. Yousef later plotted to assassinate Pope John Paul II and blow up several airliners over the Pacific Ocean before he was arrested in Pakistan in 1995. Earlier, the CNN host asked Simmons, “Isn’t there a reasonable solution?” Simmons, who is also a contributor to the left-wing Huffington Post website (where he f irst expressed his support for the mosque ), spouted a series of liberal talking points, not only on the mosque, but on American domestic and foreign policy: SIMMONS: Muslim-Americans and other Americans are fighting to free Muslims. But we’re saying that we can’t have Muslims have a religious center or a community center in the community where two- there are two churches. There’s the holocaust museum- or the Museum of Tolerance, and we can’t have a mosque there. That says something very bad about the state of America today. Even if there’s a discussion- for me, is- it’s hurtful. But the two billion Muslims who are watching us now are being hurt …. The fact is al Qaeda attacked us, not the Muslim religion, and if Islam didn’t attack us, we can’t hold them all accountable, and if someone had- if someone believes that they hold ill will towards the whole Muslim faith because of it, then they’re wrong …. It’s a center that is open to everyone, and I think we should respect their plans. In fact, we should support their plans, and that’s been my opinion, as the chairman of the Foundation for Ethnic Understanding, and Rabbi Marc Schneier who’s also the chairman of the World Jewish Congress. The whole group of us who promote religious tolerance, who know how important it is, because if we don’t promote religious tolerance, then we could create- we already have created, after 9/11, a very negative reaction, when, in fact, we had our chance to promote world peace. After 9/11, with all the compassion that was given to us, we threw a lot of it away, and I think now is an opportunity for us to turn it around, and promote a relationship with the Islamic world that makes good sense, not one that’s based in fear and ignorance . [H/t:  NewsBusters user dronetek ]

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Russell Simmons on CNN: Christians Bombed the WTC in 1993?

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‘Morning Joe’ Panels Condescendingly Smear Opposition to Ground Zero Mosque – for Two Days Running

Posted on August 18, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

For two days running, MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” seemed overwhelmingly in favor of allowing the Ground Zero mosque to be built, despite a poll showing Americans being opposed to the construction of the mosque. The panels included co-hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski, and liberal columnist Mike Barnicle as well as MSNBC contributors Mark Halperin, Norah O’Donnell, and Pat Buchanan. Their toughest rhetoric was reserved for former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, due to his comments about the mosque being the equivalent of Nazis hanging a swastika next to a Holocaust memorial. But the talking heads also failed to give the American people’s opposition to the mosque its just due. Perhaps the biggest gem came from columnist Mike Barnicle, who described those Americans questioning the mosque as stuck in their own reality. “They’re not really thinking about the idealistic trek, they’re thinking about their own reality,” Barnicle quipped. “And their own reality is that we were attacked on September 11. They’re not making the connection to the Constitution, and that’s where we are this morning.” Joe Scarborough called the whole debate a “wedge issue” that is distracting the country “from doing good things” such as “working on jobs.” The co-host continued, saying the issue has become so much more complicated due to opposition to the mosque, and added that America giving in to “radicals” could worsen the whole debate. When the news broke that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) opposed the location of the Ground Zero mosque, co-host Mika Brzesinski huffed, “I just have a question. Did somebody ask him what his opinion was? Um, ’cause I didn’t. Did you?”     When Pat Buchanan asked guest Anita Dunn “What about tolerance for the vast majority of Americans and their opinions?” Mika Brzezinski jumped in with Dunn afterward. “They have, like, other things there that are – a lot of people would have issues with – like peep shows,” the co-host chimed in, dismissing the argument that the area around Ground Zero is free of obstacles to its “hallowed ground” status. The panels reserved the biting criticism for Newt Gingrich, however, describing his words as “political pyromania,” “despicable,” and “demonizing.” Mike Barnicle went further, opting to get personal, bringing Gingrich’s failed marriages into the debate. “Apparently, because he has had two badly failed marriages, quite publicly failed marriages, [he] has now married his ambition to his ignorance on this issue in a craven attempt to get votes, as he thinks he’s going to run for President of the United States.” A transcript of the notable quotes from the two shows is as follows: MORNING JOE 8/17/10 7:06 a.m. EDT MIKA BRZEZINSKI: I just have a question. Did somebody ask [Sen. Harry Reid] what his opinion was? Um, ’cause I didn’t. Did you? (…) MIKE BARNICLE: It has nothing to do with life in America. But it’s going to be, right now and for the forseeable future, maybe a couple of weeks, the paramount issue in our pathetic politics. (…) JOE SCARBOROUGH: Newt has always been a provocateur. We’ve known that, that’s how he got elected Speaker. I don’t think he’s gone quite as far as he has. He’s made a couple of comments over the past month, Pat, that have been obviously fanning the flames of several controversies, and Newt’s taken, then this – what did Mike call it – political – BRZEZINSKI: Pyromania. SCARBOROUGH: …pyromania to a new level. (…) SCARBOROUGH: I just know that the only human being alive who has characterized him as a radical Islamist suggesting that he’s a terrorist somehow connected to 9/11 attacks is Newt Gingrich, who again has compared building of a mosque in America, on private property Mika, to putting a swastika on the Holocaust Museum. It’s deplorable, it is sick politics, and I pray to God sincerely that some Republican on the national stage, some elected leader, will have the courage to call Newt Gingrich out. Because until the party stands up to this type of extremism, this is a party that will find itself further and further marginalized by these voices of hate and anger. (…) BRZEZINSKI: Honestly Anita, I think it’s going to lead us toward an independent candidate sooner than we could expect. (…) ANITA DUNN, Fmr. White House Comm. Dir.: I think the Republican Party as solidifying it’s reputation for intolerance in this year for almost any kind of difference in American society, is going down a very dangerous long-term road, and they might see some short-term things, although I think the American people are better than that. PAT BUCHANAN: Anita, let me ask you about this word “tolerance.” I mean, what about tolerance for the views of the thousands of families of those who died on 9/11. Hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers are saying “Please, you have the right to move the mosque there, but please don’t do it, it doesn’t belong there.” And the vast majority of Americans who say the same thing, they have a right to build a mosque. But for heavens sakes, given the fact that the terrorists were Islamic, it was crucial to their identity and their mission, please don’t put an Islamic mosque just two blocks from where this happened. What about tolerance for the vast majority of Americans and their opinions? DUNN: Well, you know, I have to ask, it’s two blocks from the site. It’s a center that is supposed to be about promoting inner faith and about reaching out, which is in many ways what I think President Bush back in those horrible days of 2001, really tried to promote. And I think that how many blocks is okay? Is nine blocks okay? Is ten? I don’t know where you go with this argument. BRZEZINSKI: And Anita? They have, like, other things there that are, a lot of people would have issues with like peep shows. So, I mean, I think you bring up a really good point. (…) SCARBOROUGH: The Gingrich comment – so over the top. (…) BRZEZINSKI: I think that Gingrich’s comments are more of a story than anything the President did. I think they are a real sign of the times, and I hope that the times are changing, and that the people don’t play into that, fall for it even, and that they’re smarter. SCARBOROUGH: The comments are reckless, they’re irresponsible, they make millions of Muslim Americans law-abiding Muslim Americans – feel as if some leaders want them to be under siege in their own country. And it sends a horrific message across the globe. BRZEZINSKI: Yeah. But what you’re saying actually takes a backbone, and takes a little bit of self-control, when it comes to not wanting to feed into either extremist views or to make waves by kind of playing into weaknesses, tendencies, or even a lack of understanding of our Constitution that some may have. (…) SCARBOROUGH: Because I actually have read the First Amendment, and understand what the First Amendment means, and understand what freedom of religion means, and understand that if our government, our centralized state takes actions which chills people’s freedom of religion today, because they’re Muslims, and because they’re unpopular in lower Manhattan, then the next time with another administration, it could be a Pentecostal church that’s not allowed to build in San Francisco. And then it may be an Evangelical church or a conservative Catholic church or it may be, with anti-Semitism in this country and across Europe, it may be a conservative Jewish synagogue 20 years from now. I mean, you don’t take the first step down this path, it’s what, in law school, our professors always called the slippery slope. This is taking the first step, and when Newt Gingrich compares Muslims to Nazis, which he did, unmistakably, compared Muslims to Nazis simply because of the god they worship, because of the faith they follow, that is contemptible, and it suggests that Newt Gingrich is either desperate for votes, or desperate for money. I suggest this man read the Constitution of the United States of America, and that he reveres the Constitution of the United States of America, and he stops pandering to the lowest base of American politics, and instead embraces the genius of our Constitution. BRZEZINSKI: He is definitely pandering, and even worse, and I don’t even like to think of the word that comes to mind to characterize this, but he’s demonizing people. (…) SCARBOROUGH: Newt Gingrich will not be elected President of the United States. He will not even win a Republican primary. He will sell a lot of books. He will make a lot of money. He will stir up a lot of hatred on the right on this issue, but just because he may have this overarching ideological theory of a grand clash between civilizations doesn’t mean that he can get his facts wrong, doesn’t mean that he can call the Imam a “radical Islamist.” (…) BARNICLE: It’s about the lowest common denominator of politics, taken there by people just like Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the House, who apparently, because he has had two badly failed marriages, quite publicly failed marriages, has now married his ambition to his ignorance on this issue in a craven attempt to get votes, as he thinks he’s going to run for President of the United States. MORNING JOE 8/18/10 6:47 a.m. EDT SCARBOROUGH: So even if the President, even if David Patterson, even if people inside this Islamic cultural center developing want to move it 20 blocks, we now are in a much more complicated situation than we would have been a month ago in trying to figure out how to do it without thinking, “Well, America caved in to these radicals that were accusing this guy of being a Muslim radical, and accusing all Muslims of being Nazis, so it’s gotten much more complicated, hasn’t it? (…) BARNICLE: I think this entire flap is just one more thumb on the scale tilted against the President at this moment in time. Memory has nothing to do with it. And I think what the mosque flap does, is it adds to the agita that’s out there in this country over the economy. I mean, the President can talk all he wants about what he inherited. This is his economy, these are his wars, this is his problem, and now I think people are looking and saying “Geez, is this guy in over his head?” Not that he is, but I think people are now beginning to wonder what is going on here. Every time he opens his mouth, and maybe he opens his mouth too much, something happens. (…) BARNICLE: There’s a lot of people in this country who say, you know, “Why? Why are we letting them build a mosque?” Them being the people who want to build the mosque. They’re not really thinking about the idealistic trek, they’re thinking about their own reality. And their own reality is that we were attacked on September 11. They’re not making the connection to the Constitution, and that’s where we are this morning. (…) SCARBOROUGH: The fact of the matter is that Harry Reid was forced by Sharron Angle to come out and take this position after Newt Gingrich started going on Fox News comparing Muslims to Nazis. Now if you don’t think that there is a connection, a nexus, between Harry Reid scrambling out with a statement after being pressured by Sharron Angle to make a statement on this, you are, I think you are sadly disconnected from the realities of Nevada politics. I know that’s not the case. (…) SCARBOROUGH: We always, always find a wedge issue, as a country, to distract us from doing good things, to distract us from working on jobs, to distract us from balancing the budget, to distract us from reforming social security, to distract us from ending the war. There are always these stupid wedge issues – and I’m not talking about this one specifically – where there’s more heat than light, and it’s a distraction for Washington and the chattering classes.

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‘Morning Joe’ Panels Condescendingly Smear Opposition to Ground Zero Mosque – for Two Days Running

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NY Daily News Reporter Touts Online Poll That 70% of New Yorkers Think Mosque Opposition Based on ‘Hatred’

Posted on August 18, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Appearing in the 2:00PM ET hour on MSNBC, New York Daily News reporter Samuel Goldsmith cited a poll featured on the paper’s website , about opposition to the Ground Zero mosque: “[it] shows that 70% of New Yorkers say that they think the opposition is out of hatred and religious intolerance.” Unfortunately, Goldsmith forgot to mention that it was a completely unscientific poll that only appeared within articles on the topic and allowed people to potentially vote numerous times. The slanted poll question read: “Is opposition to the building of a mosque near Ground Zero intolerant?” The three responses offered were: “Yes, it’s pure religious bigotry against Muslims; No, you can be against because it dishonors victims of Sept. 11; Maybe, but the sensitive thing to do is to move it further from the WTC site.” Goldsmith touted the Daily News poll after anchor Jeff Rossen cited a scientific poll on the issue: “A new Siena College poll suggests – and we actually have the results right here – that 63% of New Yorkers oppose this Islamic center. Only 23% support it.” After promoting the unreliable online poll, Goldsmith argued: “…there’s a lot of voices coming out….It’s hard to really get a grasp of what the public opinion is, I think.” Here is a full transcript of the August 18 program: 2:08PM ET JEFF ROSSEN: President Obama not backing down from his comments about the Ground Zero mosque and the Islamic center. At the end of an event in Columbus, Ohio today a reporter asked the President whether he had any regrets, speaking out on the issue. BARACK OBAMA: The answer is no regrets. ROSSEN: You couldn’t hear that, he said the answer is no regrets. Samuel Goldsmith is with the New York Daily News. Thanks so much for joining us Samuel. GOLDSMITH: How are you? ROSSEN: So, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi now calling for an investigation into the groups that are opposing this. What are your thoughts? SAMUEL GOLDSMITH: Well, she’s the first one to come out and say that there should be an investigation into that side of the argument. So far there have just been calls for investigations into the group behind the project. ROSSEN: There are reports that the makers – that the developers of the mosque have turned down an offer from the New York Governor David Paterson to relocate this center and this mosque. Is there any compromise left, you think – in the cards? GOLDSMITH: You know I’m not – I’m having a hard time finding out if that report’s true. I don’t think it is. They said yesterday that they were willing to meet with the Governor. Though they’re also saying they’re not interested in relocating. ROSSEN: A new Siena College poll suggests – and we actually have the results right here – that 63% of New Yorkers oppose this Islamic center. Only 23% support it. It appears that doesn’t matter to the President or to the Mayor as well. What are your thoughts? GOLDSMITH: It’s interesting, the poll, we have a poll on our website that also shows that 70% of New Yorkers say that they think the opposition is out of hatred and religious intolerance. So there’s a lot of voices coming out. The polls show one side of it. It’s hard to really get a grasp of what the public opinion is, I think. ROSSEN: At the same time, 64% of voters say the developers have the constitutional right to build the mosque. So it’s really a very interesting poll. Just as many people say they shouldn’t build it there but they also agree that they have the right to. GOLDSMITH: Which is basically what a lot of politicians have said, which is they’re not commenting on the wisdom of it, but they believe they have the right. That’s what the President said. ROSSEN: Samuel Goldsmith with the New York Daily News. Thanks for joining us, sir. GOLDSMITH: Thank you.

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NY Daily News Reporter Touts Online Poll That 70% of New Yorkers Think Mosque Opposition Based on ‘Hatred’

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Mosque Leaders Are Not Planning to Move, and Other Cordoba House Developments! [Controversy]

Posted on August 18, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Now that Barack Obama has opened his mouth on Cordoba House —aka Park51, aka (but not really) the ” Ground Zero Mosque “—the ugly story won’t be going away for a while. So, what’s the latest? More

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For Bill Press, Ground Zero Is Sacred Until Conservatives Say So

Posted on August 18, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Bill Press is confused. He can’t seem to decide whether Ground Zero is a sacred site. When he was using the memory of 9/11 as a political football to blast Glenn Beck, lower Manhattan was hallowed ground. But now that conservatives are making that claim, Press has proclaimed that the area “is not a sacred site.” Make up your mind, Bill! In June, Press compared Beck’s planned 8/28 rally at the Lincoln Memorial commemorating the anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I have a dream” speech to an Al Qaeda “rally on September 11 – at Ground Zero.” “Sometimes you have to stand up and say, this is wrong – the wrong place,” he added. “It’s a slap to the American people… There are some places where cheap political tricks should not be allowed.” But now that the right is saying virtually the same thing about the Ground Zero Mosque, Press has proclaimed that “there’s only one reason to oppose this mosque, and that is to paint Islam as an evil religion and to paint all Muslims and equate them with a 19 terrorist who’s flew into that building. it is wrong. it is un-American and the people against it ought to be ashamed of playing a cheap political trick” (h/t Jamas Taranto ). Well which is it? Doug Powers writes : Tea Partiers are like Al Qaeda even though the only thing the Tea Party has in common with 9/11 is that it’s trying to prevent another one. In this case, Press is not condemning an entire group of people for the actions of a few, but rather demonizing an entire group of people for the actions of none of them. The Tea Party is comparable to the Islamic terrorists who murdered thousands on 9/11, but it’s un-American to criticize a mosque near Ground Zero because to do so is to blame an entire group for the actions of a few? This is hilariously misguided and insane even for Bill Press.

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For Bill Press, Ground Zero Is Sacred Until Conservatives Say So

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Maureen Dowd: Obama Needs Bush’s Help On Ground Zero Mosque

Posted on August 18, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

Mark August 18, 2010, on your calendar as the day New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd published a piece bashing Barack Obama and praising George W. Bush. This comes less than 24 hours after CNN.com did exactly the same thing over the same issue. Needless to say, Dowd’s position in her column entitled “Our Mosque Madness” went completely contrary to public opinion regarding the building of an Islamic center at Ground Zero. But before we get there, let’s first take a look at a few paragraphs destined to give many readers whiplash as they slam on their reading brakes in disbelief: The war against the terrorists is not a war against Islam. In fact, you can’t have an effective war against the terrorists if it is a war on Islam. George W. Bush understood this. And it is odd to see Barack Obama less clear about this matter than his predecessor. It’s time for W. to weigh in. This – along with immigration reform and AIDS in Africa – was one of his points of light. As the man who twice went to war in the Muslim world, he has something of an obligation to add his anti-Islamophobia to this mosque madness. W. needs to get his bullhorn back out. And it is odd to see Barack Obama less clear about this matter than his predecessor. It’s time for W. to weigh in. Actually, what’s odd to see is this liberal stalwart bashing an unabashedly liberal President – maybe the most liberal President America has ever seen! – while praising the object of her disaffection in the very same paragraph. Forgive me – I’ve got to take a few moments to compose myself. After all, didn’t Dowd just three days prior tear into Obama’s left-leaning critics – including MSNBCers with rare unkind words for the current White House resident! – for having the nerve to speak ill of the leader of the growing less and less free world? Now in roughly 72 hours, this same woman is so disappointed in her hero that she excoriated him with the ultimate dissing: even W understands this issue better than you! That could leave a scar that will only come out with serious counseling. Of course, readers shouldn’t get giddy over the President being humiliated by a fan, for Dowd had a larger point:  Have any of the screaming critics noticed that there already are two mosques in the same neighborhood – one four blocks away and one 12 blocks away. Should they be dismantled? And what about the louche liquor stores and strip clubs in the periphery of the sacred ground? By now you have to be willfully blind not to know that the imam in charge of the project, Feisal Abdul Rauf, is the moderate Muslim we have allegedly been yearning for. As I’m still recovering from the W is better than O at something remark, let me bring in Commentary’s Jennifer Rubin to assist in tearing apart this inanity: Uh, not really. We’re yearning for a Muslim who specifically condemns Hamas as a terrorist group and doesn’t suggest that the U.S. is responsible for 9/11. We’re yearning for a Muslim who doesn’t use “hallowed ground” – where 3,000 Americans died at the hands of Islamist extremists – to build a “a symbol of victory for militant Muslims around the world.” ( That from an American Muslim whose mother was incinerated on 9/11 by those who “believed that all non-Muslims are infidels and that the duty of Muslims is to renounce them.”) We’re yearning for a Muslim who is “desperate to reform his faith” and forthright in his assessment that the placement of the mosque at Ground Zero is based on “a belief that Islamic structures are a political statement and even Ground Zero should be looked upon through the lens of political Islam and not a solely American one.” (That from a Muslim and former U.S. Navy officer.)  So much for Maureen’s moderate Muslim moniker. But let’s allow that to pass for a moment, as what seems more interesting than her typically errant banter about this so-called religion of peace was that Dowd wasn’t the only liberal columnist to suggest in the past few days that Obama needs help on this issue from Bush. As Byron York wrote Wednesday at the Washington Examiner, this appears to be a strain being caught by others: Washington Post columnist Eugene Robinson is also looking for an assist from Bush. “I…would love to hear from former President Bush on this issue,” Robinson wrote Tuesday in a Post chat session. And Peter Beinart, a former editor of the New Republic, is also feeling some nostalgia for the former president. “Words I never thought I’d write: I pine for George W. Bush,” Beinart wrote Tuesday in The Daily Beast. “Whatever his flaws, the man respected religion, all religion.” For the moment, with Obama failing to live up to expectations, Bush-bashing is over. It’s all a little amusing — and perhaps a little maddening — for some members of the Bush circle. When I asked Karl Rove to comment, he responded that it means “redemption is always available for liberals and time causes even the most stubborn of ideologues to revisit mistaken judgments.” But won’t these Bush critics shortly return to criticizing Bush? “This Bush swoon by selected members of the left commentariat is temporary,” Rove answered. “Their swamp fevers will return momentarily.” Well, if it doesn’t, liberals can rest assured the Obama administration is working on a vaccine it hopes will be far more effective at preventing this malady than the one it forced upon Americans to fend off the dreaded swine flu.

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Maureen Dowd: Obama Needs Bush’s Help On Ground Zero Mosque

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When Muslims Make Fun of the Amish

Posted on August 18, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

So last night on the show, Andy Levy pointed out that the person representing the Ground Zero mosque on Twitter made a few jabs at the Amish. This is what the Tweeter tweeted: Amish saying stop Muslims?1. What are you doing on the computer? 2. That’s not very Amish 3. Shouldn’t you be making butter? Later, that tweet was deleted. Which is a shame, because it didn’t have to go. See, the Mosque folks don’t understand that here in America you can make fun of any religion – yes, even the Amish – and angry followers won’t throw acid in your face or behead you in front of a tripod. And, as primitive as the Amish are, they won’t even stone you to death for adultery. But the tweeting Park51 can be forgiven: maybe they thought the Amish might head out from Lancaster County and fly a buggy straight into their building. Don’t worry, “Parky:” they wouldn’t get the horses through the Lincoln Tunnel. Anyhoo, that’s my point. We all make Amish jokes, because we can. They are nice people. The worst thing they ever did was deal meth – and in parts of rural PA, that’s almost considered a civic duty (I kid the rural PA-ers). Meanwhile, after I made my proposal to open a gay Muslim bar next to the mosque – I was warned by friends, coworkers and deli managers that I’d end up dead. Who knew so many people hated the Pet Shop Boys? But it is certainly rich for the folks behind the mosque to poke fun of a religion for eschewing modern convenience. After all, the Amish are beyond advanced when compared to the most ardent followers of Islam. Remember, the Amish do not demand that the world to return to a period when its prophet lived – a time when more people died during childbirth than from old age. But hey – at least these Mosque-eteers at Park51 can make fun of the Amish. Maybe later, they can make fun of themselves. And if you disagree with me, you’re a racist homophobe who stole my pants. Crossposted at Big Hollywood  

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When Muslims Make Fun of the Amish

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Absurd Media Meme: Ground Zero Mosque Is Fine Because There Are Strip Clubs Nearby

Posted on August 17, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

There is a new media meme rearing it’s ugly head in the many discussions of the Ground Zero Mosque. A number of journalists seem to be suggesting that if critics oppose the construction of the Mosque, they should also be incensed by the presence of strip clubs, bars, and an off-track betting location in the area. ” Just How ‘Hallowed’ is the Ground Near Ground Zero? ” asks Time Magazine’s Madison Gray. “New York Doll’s Gentleman’s Club, and the Pussycat Lounge are two strip clubs that sit within a block of Ground Zero, but are not seen as a threat to the land’s hallowed nature,” Gray added. “So it seems to some, freedom of religion might be a problem, but a $10 lap dance is not.” Gee, could it have anything to do with the fact that pole dancers didn’t fly planes into the twin towers? For some, the right to build a mosque and the move’s moral implications are two distinct issues, and $10 lap dances have exactly nothing to do with either. Gray goes on: Then there’s Off Track Betting, where visitors to the sacred neighborhood are able to place bets on the horses without even breaking their solemn focus on the dump trucks and cranes that sit where the Twin Towers once stood. Think about it: where else can you show your reverence while at the same time putting all your faith in Fat Chance Cinnamon or Poco’s Black Charger? Let’s not forget Thunder Lingerie and More, where you can pay your respects to the 9/11 tragedy, then take in a peep show, or pick up a few naughty items for that trip back to the hotel. And most noticeable of anything you could see around this untouchable area are the dozens of street vendors who sit a stone’s throw away from Ground Zero capitalizing on the fact that it is one of New York’s most visited tourist attractions. Possibly millions of dollars change hands every weekend all in the name of capitalist gain and certainly not any reverence for the 2,700 who died in the space right behind them. So deciding exactly how “hallowed” the area near Ground Zero is might be up to the individual visitor. But one thing’s true: those who have already deemed it as such don’t seem to mind the seedy stuff nearby as much as they do a quiet, private house of worship. Surely Gray forgot to add that this particular “private house of worship” is devoted to the same religion in whose name those 2,700 Americans were killed, built where landing gear from one of the planes that hit the towers fell, scheduled to be opened on September 11 of next year, and named after the Islamic Caliphate who conquered much of Medieval (Christian) Spain. I say he must have forgotten to add those details since they would accurately frame the argument against the Ground Zero mosque, and surely he was not trying to intentionally distort that argument. Of course if he were, he would also have to explain why strip clubs have any bearing whatsoever on the sanctity of an historic or prestigious location. There are three strip clubs within a few blocks of the White House . Is Gray suggesting that the White House is not a sacred location? Gray cited a blogger at History Eraser Button, who posted photos of the various locations, and wrote, Look at the photos. This neighborhood is not hallowed. The people who live and work here are not obsessed with 9/11. The blocks around Ground Zero are like every other hard-working neighborhood in New York, where Muslims are just another thread of the city fabric. The Daily Caller’s Jim Treacher handily dismantles that line of argument: Which will come as a shock to the millions of Americans who assumed lower Manhattan was now an open pasture, populated solely by a handful of tonsured monks wandering around solemnly whispering, “Remember… Remember…” This stunning insight into the nature of modern American cities has impressed everyone from Charles Johnson to Roger Ebert. Don’t you see? People are selling stuff. People are buying stuff. People are taking their clothes off for money. Dude, that building they’re turning into a mosque? (Or not-a-mosque, depending on which one helps your argument.) That place was a Burlington Coat Factory! Sure, it shut down for good on the morning of September 11, 2001, when it was hit by wreckage from a plane flown into the World Trade Center, but up until then it was a Burlington Coat Factory. “Hallowed ground”? Ha! Humor aside, even given the astounding irrelevance of establishments at Ground Zero that don’t bear ideological similarity to perhaps the most infamous mass murderers in American history, journalists continue to peddle this nonsense. As Scott Whitlock reported yesterday , ABC’s Dan Harris parroted the line on “Good Morning America,” noting that “Defenders [of the Mosque] point out that also close to Ground Zero are two strip clubs, an adult/lingerie store and an off-track betting parlor.” And as Doug Powers succinctly put it , “This would be a logical rebuttal to Ground Zero mosque critics, provided the Twin Towers had been taken down by nine poll dancers, seven pairs of edible underwear and three bookies.” As it is, the line of argument has no bearing on the moral validity of the project. “It may be sacred ground,” writes Erin Einhorn for the New York Daily News, “but the streets surrounding Ground Zero are also a place where New Yorkers work, eat and buy shampoo.” Stop the presses. New Yorkers buy shampoo near Ground Zero? Amazing. Not that they buy shampoo in the general vicinity of where they live. Amazing that for much of the media, apparently this can actually pass for a valid argument in favor of the Mosque, or at least in opposition to its critics.

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Absurd Media Meme: Ground Zero Mosque Is Fine Because There Are Strip Clubs Nearby

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CBS: Despite Unpopularity, Obama Still ‘Raking in Millions’ for Dems

Posted on August 17, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

While teasing an upcoming report on President Obama campaigning for Democrats on Tuesday’s CBS Early Show, fill-in co-host Chris Wragge touted: “…plunging poll numbers haven’t stopped the President from raking in millions at fund raisers across the country.” Later, White House correspondent Chip Reid observed: “You know, the President’s approval rating is only 44%, but he is still quite popular with the party’s base and he’s using that clout to raise millions of dollars for fellow Democrats.” Reid went on to declare: “President Obama and the Democratic Party are managing to raise big bucks in the hope of retaining control of Congress. The Democratic National Committee is committing $50 million to help candidates in 2010, $20 million in cash, and $30 million to get out the vote.” A campaign sound bite was played of the President attacking Republicans: “We do not fear the future. We shape the future. That’s part of what this election’s about. The other side wants you to be afraid of the future.” Reid concluded: “President Obama is doing six fund-raisers over three days in five states. By week’s end, he’ll have raised over $56 million this campaign season.” Only at the end of his report did Reid briefly notice the money raised by the GOP: “Now, Republicans are also raking in the cash this campaign season. The Republican Governors Association, for example, has brought in $58 million since President Obama came into office.” In addition to the President’s fundraising efforts, the segment also focused on political fallout from the Ground Zero mosque controversy, though only in terms of how the issue would impact the elections. Reid explained how Obama was “now dealing with a split in the party over the issue of religious freedom.” Reid continued: “President Obama’s support of the right to build an Islamic community center and mosque near Ground Zero is causing a rift within the party.” He noted how Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid disagreed with the President’s position and added: “Some in the party fear the controversy will carry over into the midterm campaigns.” Following Reid’s report, fill-in co-host Erica Hill asked Democratic strategist Tanya Acker and Republican strategist Bay Buchanan about the issue. Speaking to Acker, Hill wondered: “President Obama made these remarks and now it’s really forcing a lot of Democrats to choose sides. So moving forward, what’s the best message for Democratic candidates as they tackle this – what’s now become a national issue?” Acker argued: “I think this is an issue about religious freedom and the Constitution….Democrats, and frankly Americans generally, need to understand what this issue is about.” Hill then turned to Buchanan: “Bay, how much of an issue should Republicans make this? Because at the end of the day, for most voters, the real issue here is still the economy.” Buchanan challenged Acker’s assertion: “This has nothing to do with religious freedom. There’s 100 mosques or so in New York City. Nobody’s suggesting we tear them all down. What we’re saying is Americans respect hallowed ground. This is hallowed ground, 9/11 is – Ground Zero is hallowed ground.” Acker shot back at Buchanan: “I’m pleased to know that Bay is not in support of tearing down mosques in the United States of America. I’m glad that that issue is off the table….to suggest that Islam – a faith that billions of people around the world adhere to – is endemically somehow compared to terrorism is just wrong.” Here is a full transcript of the August 17 segment:  7:00AM TEASE CHRIS WRAGGE: In-fighting. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid breaks with President Obama over the proposed Ground Zero mosque. HARRY REID: I think that it’s very obvious that the mosque should be built someplace else. WRAGGE: But the controversy and plunging poll numbers haven’t stopped the President from raking in millions at fund raisers across the country. We’ll have a live report. 7:01AM SEGMENT ERICA HILL: We want to take a look at politics now. It is day two of President Obama’s cross-country campaign-style fund-raisers. Today he will be in Seattle for the first time since he was a candidate. CBS News chief White House correspondent Chip Reid is traveling with the President. He joins us this morning from Los Angeles before heading north. Chip, good morning. CHIP REID: Well good morning, Erica. You know, the President’s approval rating is only 44%, but he is still quite popular with the party’s base and he’s using that clout to raise millions of dollars for fellow Democrats. But at the same time, he’s now dealing with a split in the party over the issue of religious freedom. [ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: Mosque Controversy; Top Dem Breaks Ranks With Obama] President Obama’s support of the right to build an Islamic community center and mosque near Ground Zero is causing a rift within the party. The latest, the Senate’s top Democrat, Majority Leader Harry Reid, breaking ranks with the President. HARRY REID: The Constitution gives us freedom of religion. I think that it’s very obvious that the mosque should be built someplace else. CHIP REID: Reid’s comments come after the President’s speech Friday night. BARACK OBAMA: But let me be clear. As a citizen and as president, I believe that Muslims have the right to practice their religion as everyone else in this country. REID: Some in the party fear the controversy will carry over into the midterm campaigns. But so far, President Obama and the Democratic Party are managing to raise big bucks in the hope of retaining control of Congress. The Democratic National Committee is committing $50 million to help candidates in 2010, $20 million in cash, and $30 million to get out the vote. OBAMA: We do not fear the future. We shape the future. That’s part of what this election’s about. The other side wants you to be afraid of the future. REID: President Obama is doing six fund-raisers over three days in five states. By week’s end, he’ll have raised over $56 million this campaign season. UNIDENTIFIED MAN [POLITICAL ANALYST]: People want access to the President. They’re excited to be in the room with the President and if they can get a couple minutes to whisper in his ear, they’ll pay a lot of money for it. REID: Now, Republicans are also raking in the cash this campaign season. The Republican Governors Association, for example, has brought in $58 million since President Obama came into office. Erica. HILL: Chip, thanks. CBS’s Chip Reid in Los Angeles this morning. Also joining us from Los Angeles this morning, Democratic strategist Tanya Acker and in Washington, Republican strategist Bay Buchanan. Good to have both of you with us this morning. BAY BUCHANAN: Thanks, Erica. TANYA ACKER: Good to see you. [ON-SCREEN HEADLINE: Countdown to Midterms; Assessing the Impact of Obama’s Mosque Comments] HILL: Tanya, I want to start with you. Forget the should he, shouldn’t he have said it. It’s been established, President Obama made these remarks and now it’s really forcing a lot of Democrats to choose sides. So moving forward, what’s the best message for Democratic candidates as they tackle this – what’s now become a national issue? ACKER: I think that it’s very important for Democrats, frankly, and look, I would expect – I don’t think this should simply be a partisan issue, I think this is an issue about religious freedom and the Constitution. And I think that whether or not the President should have stepped into this fray – I think he should have – Democrats, and frankly Americans generally, need to understand what this issue is about. And if Democrats lose seats because they took a stance for religious freedom, then we’ve got far bigger problems than simply winning elections, frankly. HILL: Bay, how much of an issue should Republicans make this? Because at the end of the day, for most voters, the real issue here is still the economy.              BUCHANAN: There – well, it’s going to be hard to beat the economy when it comes to the election, but I got to tell you, this is an important issue because it just shows a complete lack of understanding of what is happening here. This has nothing to do with religious freedom. There’s 100 mosques or so in New York City. Nobody’s suggesting we tear them all down. What we’re saying is Americans respect hallowed ground. This is hallowed ground, 9/11 is – Ground Zero is hallowed ground. We don’t want malls built next to Manassas, we don’t want casinos built next to Gettysburg. It has nothing to do with us being against development. What we want is this hallowed ground to be respected. And it does not respect or honor those that died to build a mosque, the very kind of statement to those who died, it’s an insult to them. HILL: But – but how much- ACKER: Well, I’m pleased to know that- HILL: Go ahead, Tanya. ACKER: I’m sorry. HILL: Go ahead. ACKER: I was just going to say, I’m pleased to know that Bay is not in support of tearing down mosques in the United States of America. I’m glad that that issue is off the table. But talking about what this issue really means, of course it’s hallowed ground, but to suggest that Islam – a faith that billions of people around the world adhere to – is endemically somehow compared to terrorism is just wrong. And as Americans, we should not be, we should not be propounding that message. It’s just wrong. So, of course it’s hallowed ground- HILL: Well, we know that this is a debate that will continue, but I do have to move on to this, ladies, before we let you go. We’ve seen so much this primary season, there’s been so much talk about the fact that what Americans really want is a change, that the incumbents are going to be on their way out. Bay, I’ll start with you. Can either party or any one candidate really change the way things are done in Washington? BUCHANAN: One person can change a lot. By just speaking out, being bold. In representing the millions of Americans that are expecting that. But what we’re going to find in November is it’s not just going to be one. We’re going to have dozens upon dozens of new fresh faces coming to Washington with one intent and that is to represent the will of the American people, to be there to fight for them, to stop this outrageous spending and to try to turn the country back to a safe and sound course. That’s where you’ll find real change. HILL: We’re going to have to leave it there. Bay Buchanan, Tanya Acker, always good to have your perspective. Don’t worry, Tanya, I promise you’ll be back. You both will. Thank you.

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CBS: Despite Unpopularity, Obama Still ‘Raking in Millions’ for Dems

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Ground Zero Mosque Organizers to Israeli Newspaper: ‘Go Back to Publishing Yiddish Fables!’

Posted on August 17, 2010 by Benny Hollywood| Leave a comment

How’s this for “creating dialogue”? Yesterday, organizers of the Ground Zero mosque project took to Twitter to slam Israeli newspaper Ha’aretz, after the paper incorrectly reported that plans for the controversial Islamic prayer center were being abandoned. But some say the mosque’s organizers went too far by mocking Ha’aretz with references to Jewish culture. ” On a side note, if Haaretz likes publishing fables, perhaps they could go back to the Yiddish ones with parables #welikethosebetter ,” Tweeted Park51 , which calls itself the “official Twitter account” of the Ground Zero mosque project. Yiddish is a language that originated with and was used primarily by the Ashkenazi Jewish community in Eastern Europe. After the Tweet caused a small outcry with some calling it “anti-semitic,” Park51 appeared to remove the comment from its Twitter page, though there is still a link available to the original statement . ” Fine lemme retract the yiddish one and restate – the intent was that Haaretz published an unsubstantiated fable not a fact,” Park51 Tweeted, in an attempt to backtrack on statement. ” Apparently we can take a bashing all day but we can’t make a jab about fables. :(” Later, Park51 attempted to explain the reasoning behind the Yiddish dig. ” I meant it as a joke as my cousin’s mother used to tell us Yiddish stories as kids (she’s Jewish) ,” Park51 Tweeted. Ah, the Ground Zero mosque project. Building bridges between cultures, one Jewish joke at a time.

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Ground Zero Mosque Organizers to Israeli Newspaper: ‘Go Back to Publishing Yiddish Fables!’

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