No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
Well, just when I nearly had some of you convinced that yes, Moderate Islam exists, Dirka-Dirka-Triple-Muhammed-Jihad tries to blow up a bunch of kids and a Christmas tree in Portland, setting back my campaign for drawing these important distinctions by about a thousand years.
The Internet chatter is registering vexation with news reports that fail to say the obvious--that the bomber-manqué is a Muslim--but this time, give the media a break. I yield to no one in my vexation with the world's willingness to submit to a reign of euphemism, but when your story features the words "Allahu Akbar," "jihad," and a guy named "Mohamed Osman Mohamud," it's just superfluous to note that the the subject of the story is a Muslim. If I write, "After finishing his bagel and consulting the Talmud, Shmuel the rabbi applied himself to a kosher pickle," it's not so much political correctness as verbal economy that prevents me from adding, "Shmuel, by the way, is a Jew."
- Comment (26)
- · Quote
- · UnfollowFollow (2)
- Pages:
- 1
- 2
- Pages:
- 1
- 2
Comments :
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
Not helping, but funny:
Oct '10
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
I want to try to ask here what I couldn't ask in your previous post about the term Islamophobia due to internet connection problems. I think we can agree that most Muslims aren't closet terrorists. Do you think that there is a problem within Islamic teaching or history that lends itself to this? Or to put another way, what would you say to Mark Steyn's idea that Muslims are moderate, but Islam isn't?
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
There are problems both with the teaching and the history, severely exacerbated now by their mixture with 20th century totalitarian ideologies and Saudi money--which funds more extremism than most people can begin to wrap their heads around. But I don't agree with Mark Steyn on this. Islam is only monolithic if you accept precisely the formulation of its extreme adherents. As far as I'm concerned, it's whatever self-described Muslims say it is. And they do not all say the same things.
May '10
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
I never see the media make the obvious point. It's always "Chicago Man" or "Somali-born man." This story is from a few days ago. It's always the same in the press.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/ct-met-bomb-threat-sentencing-20101124,0,7733354.
I'm still mostly convinced by your arguments on moderate Islam. Even though moderate is a bad word as it implies that they are not as devout. Your bloggingheads thing from a while back was pretty good, and I liked that woman you were debating. I like the fact they are out their condemning radicals. They have a near impossible task though if it is to change masses of Muslims to think as they do.
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
In this particular case--not all of them--the media is not really leaving the reader in any doubt.
May '10
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
Claire Berlinski, Ed.
In this particular case--not all of them--the media is not really leaving the reader in any doubt. · Nov 27 at 12:33pm
I guueessss. I'm never really in doubt anymore when I hear about the latest attack. It's just bombings or attacks tend go with someone with a clearly Islamic name, who they don't name a Muslim. I'm never left in doubt, but the media refuses to acknowledge that terrorist attacks are perpetrated by Muslims. They are just "people" who want to kill Americans and Jews.
Jul '10
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
I'm skeptical. Yes, they give plenty of information, but their unwillingness to state it outright still makes one suspicious. It hints at a reflexive instinct to muddy that particular connection that may affect other stories more than this one.
After all, if the guy had yelled, "Give me liberty or give me death!", had literature critical of Obama in his house, or had ever passed within 100 yards of a Tea Party rally, do you think they would hesitate for even a second before referring to him as "conservative" in the first graph?
May '10
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
...and by next year, Janet Napolitano will mandate that anyone attending a Christmas function in a public place has their belongings scoured and their bits squeezed.
May '10
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
The alleged terrorist allegedly attempted to use a van allegedly packed with explosives.
How long before we have DHS institute random searches of vans, and car trunks, and back packs, brief cases and purses.
Janet Napolitano wants more security on trains boats and public transit.
If it keep us safe it's worth it, right?
Jul '10
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
Ah, more proselytizing from the "religion of peace."
Jun '10
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
As a person who lives 5 miles from this incident, I take it pretty seriously. I just read the "Oregonian", the local newspaper here, and they use all the caveats you mentioned, Claire. No mention of Islam, just a "Corvallis man" and "Somali-born naturalized U.S. citizen." This Christmas tree lighting event occurs every year and is packed with people. Though it was inevitable that this attack wouldn't have worked, the notion that there are people willing to attack a place like this is pretty scary. At least the Oregonian said it was a "Christmas tree" lighting instead of a "holiday tree" lighting.
Jul '10
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
It wouldn't be necessary to discuss this at all if we had the guts to change our suicidal immigration policy.
In recent years, we've had the Fort Dix Six, the Lackawanna 6, the Times Square Bomber, the Dallas skyscraper bomber, the New York railway-tunnel bomber, the Tar Heel terrorist, the DC Metro bomber and now this guy - every one of them a Muslim immigrant.
We have troops fighting this menace 5,000 miles away and meantime we leave the front door wide open.
Nov '10
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
I never doubted that moderate Muslims exist. The question is: Are there enough of them? Are they brave enough to challenge the radical Imams? Are they willing to stand up en masse and say, "You will have to kill all of us"?
Until that happens, your "Moderate Muslim of the Week Show" is going to be a futile, thankless production.
Sooner or later, some Muslim maniac is going to light a hot candle, and we will be picking the body parts of toddlers off the Christmas Tree. After that, people will not even want to hear the term "moderate Muslim."
It is only going to get worse, Claire, because you are getting no cooperation from moderate Muslims themselves. They are afraid, as well as infected with the "fatalistic apathy" that Churchill noted.
I do admire your persistence. I just think you are ramming your head into the wall.
Edited on Nov 27, 2010 at 6:55pmOct '10
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
the US is very lucky. Since 9/11, no bombs were successfully detonated by by jihadists or rightwing christian terrorists on US soil. Sure there were shootings, like the Fort Hood massacre, but shootings are more common in the US, especially in universities and workplace/post office.
Oct '10
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
I don't doubt at all that there are moderates and that they significantly outnumber the crazy jihadist radicals. In my area, the muslim enclaves are not "no go zones" like the ones you see in France or Malmo Sweden but "you're welcome" zones because of their ehem... thriving dvd business. That area is low-crime, low unemployment, unlike 10 yrs ago.
Jul '10
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
..."rightwing christian terrorists..."?
I don't know what you read or watch for your news in Manila, but you probably should stop sniffing glue while you're at it.
May '10
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
One would think that the target, a Xmas Tree (!), might make the perpetrator's religion a relevant datum worthy of publication. Or maybe he just happens to hate trees...
Oct '10
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
Yes, Moderate Muslims outnumber the dangerous Islamists by a wide margin, but still... you don't want to be a Christian minority in a place like Pakistan.
Oct '10
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
Kenneth
..."rightwing christian terrorists..."?
I don't know what you read or watch for your news in Manila, but you probably should stop sniffing glue while you're at it. · Nov 27 at 7:42pm
I get and watch FOXNEWS.
May '10
Re: No, it's Not Necessary to Say the Obvious About the Portland Bomber: It's Obvious
I'll suggest something probably unpopular, but I genuinely believe this latest arrest is merely window dressing to show the American public that we are cracking down on domestic terrorism. However, this, like the recent bust in D.C., was a sting operation. It's like they are creating this elaborate plan to catch the dealer on the street corner, instead of going after the kingpin. This kid and the other guy in D.C. (who wanted to blow up the subway) are useful idiots. I don't really see this as making progress, but making headlines. In other less-flattering news for this administration, we are still at war. We have lost over 40 service members serving in Iraq and Afghanistan in the last month. But hey, why should news outlets mention the deaths of those who actually fight terrorists, when the FBI just arrested an 18 year old Muslim, who was too stupid to know he was being duped. I appreciate the concern and fear people have over the possibility of other terrorist attack on US soil. But this strikes me as an inefficient way to address the problem.