Blood on Their Hands

 

Tonight our hearts break for parents, their teenagers and even young children who were brutally murdered and injured for simply attending a pop concert in Manchester, England. Those of us who feel angry are justified. There is blood on the hands of politicians who refuse to admit evil exists in our midst. Violence occurs when evil is allowed to metastasize, and it has been allowed. British officials have stepped back from no-go zones because “Islamophobia.” The Mayor of London has accepted this carnage as the price for “living in a major city”. Read that again. The Mayor of one of the world’s greatest cities said this:

Sadiq Khan: London mayor says terror attacks ‘part and parcel’ of living in a major city.

I grew up in England, have returned many times and watched as the town of my childhood profoundly changed. There is no doubt a vast majority of immigrants are hardworking, family-minded people of good faith. But we now have a reality that the media won’t report due to political correctness, that there are extremist Sharia no-go zones across the island country that politicians and police will not address.

Manchester is suffering tonight from the result of Islamism expanding across the country. On my last trip to Birmingham, I stopped for a pint at a local pub on the way to the airport and found myself in one such zone. I was practically escorted out as young Muslim men dressed like football hooligans eyed me with contempt. My guardian angel told me I had no business in that pub or neighborhood, that the “police won’t ‘elp you ‘ere, guv.”

As National Review’s Andrew C. McCarthy stated, “Birmingham, a city increasingly enveloped by sharia enclaves that, to varying degrees, have become “no-go zones” for non-Muslims and agents of the state, including police.”

Theresa May is up for re-election on June 8 and this act of barbarism will play a role in her campaign, as it should.

For those of us parents who have taken their teenagers to concerts just like this, we have a message for politicians across the globe; It’s time to take back the narrative from those who’s national security policy’s primary concern is Islamophobia or racism. Frankly, damn them. Their political correctness will only result in more carnage, more parents mourning, and more children dying.

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  1. NYLibertarianGuy Inactive
    NYLibertarianGuy
    @PaulKingsbery

    Dave Sussman (View Comment):
    Your defense of Khan is curious in that you can google countless articles referring to his financiers and organizers who also support the worst terrorist groups throughout the Middle East and North Africa. But more interesting is your outrage over me referring to Khan’s own words. While you demand on parsing his words, you don’t answer the larger question I referred to in my response; that leftists throughout Europe and America continue to maintain open border immigration policies that make attacks like this all the more likely.

    But if you insist on sticking to Khan, then here are where his latest efforts lie. As the conservative government under May is now exporting immigrants (and giving them 2,000 pounds for the trouble) in response to BREXIT Khan gave voters the finger by creating a program called “London is Open”. The slogan is “London – Everyone Welcome”. His reasoning for the ‘open immigration into London’ is based on seeking business talent, and he wants to create a specific visa option for the City of London. This effort alone has been regarded by many as a potential national security problem. This from a Mayor who won’t crack down on London’s sharia militia’s and ignores the no-go zones where people who look like me and the police are not able to enter.

    Good night.

     

    I’m not defending him, just pointing out the weaknesses in your attack.

    The funding and past associations are disturbing, but is at best tangential to the actual issues at hand.  The bottom line question is:  Does Khan “accept” terrorism (as you originally suggested) or is it “self-evident” that he views it as a problem (as you suggested later)?  I think your inability to pick a position speaks volumes about the clarity of your thinking here.

    To be clear, you think that the Mayor of London is responsible (i.e., has blood on his hands) for a terrorist attack that took place far away, in another part of England, and attribute that attack to a hypothetical “open borders” policy for which he advocates, but is not actually implemented now, even though there is a Tory national government at present in the U.K. that has responsibility for its borders. Do I have that right?

    • #31
  2. ModEcon Inactive
    ModEcon
    @ModEcon

    Dave Sussman (View Comment):
    Khan gave voters the finger by creating a program called “London is Open”. The slogan is “London – Everyone Welcome”. His reasoning for the ‘open immigration into London’ is based on seeking business talent, and he wants to create a specific visa option for the City of London.

    NYLibertarianGuy (View Comment):

    I think you are ignoring a few valid points like the quote from Dave Sussman. I agree that we shouldn’t blame this attack on Khan, but we can set him as an example of wrong politics.

    Here is a direct quote from the campaign :

    Sadiq is urging all Londoners, organisations and businesses to show their support for the #LondonIsOpen message via social media and other creative ways.

    We don’t simply tolerate each other’s differences, we celebrate them. Many people from all over the globe live and work here, contributing to every aspect of life in our city. We now need to make sure that people across London, and the globe, hear that #LondonIsOpen. I urge everyone to get involved with this simple but powerful campaign to send a positive message to the world.

    Sadiq Khan

    (emphasis mine)

    This is the kind of message that ignores the role of different ideologies in radical islamic terrorism. Also, as the mayor of the UK’s largest city, it can’t be said that Khan isn’t influential. I have seen him as a prominent politician.

    I also will point to:

    Dave Sussman: Manchester is suffering tonight from the result of Islamism expanding across the country. On my last trip to Birmingham, U.K. I stopped for a pint at a local pub on the way to the airport and found myself in one such zone. I was practically escorted out as young Muslim men dressed like football hooligans eyed me with contempt. My guardian angel told me I had no business in that pub or neighborhood, that the “police won’t ‘elp you ‘ere, guv.”

    Lets add this source as well. Birmingham is controlled by Labour party as is Manchester so Khan’s position as a influential Labour member is relevant.

    Therefore, I think you are off base to say that bringing up Sadiq Khan in this setting is irrelevant. I think Khan’s views are relevant as representative as a prominent politician that people know more about then the local Manchester authorities and we should look into that as well and I except your point about pointing out everybody else who has contributed to the problem.

    • #32
  3. NYLibertarianGuy Inactive
    NYLibertarianGuy
    @PaulKingsbery

    ModEcon (View Comment):
    I think you are ignoring a few valid points like the quote from Dave Sussman. I agree that we shouldn’t blame this attack on Khan, but we can set him as an example of wrong politics.

    Here is a direct quote from the campaign :

    Sadiq is urging all Londoners, organisations and businesses to show their support for the #LondonIsOpen message via social media and other creative ways.

    We don’t simply tolerate each other’s differences, we celebrate them. Many people from all over the globe live and work here, contributing to every aspect of life in our city. We now need to make sure that people across London, and the globe, hear that #LondonIsOpen. I urge everyone to get involved with this simple but powerful campaign to send a positive message to the world.

    Sadiq Khan

    (emphasis mine)

    This is the kind of message that ignores the role of different ideologies in radical islamic terrorism. Also, as the mayor of the UK’s largest city, it can’t be said that Khan isn’t influential. I have seen him as a prominent politician.

    ***

    Lets add this source as well. Birmingham is controlled by Labour party as is Manchester so Khan’s position as a influential Labour member is relevant.

    Therefore, I think you are off base to say that bringing up Sadiq Khan in this setting is irrelevant. I think Khan’s views are relevant as representative as a prominent politician that people know more about then the local Manchester authorities and we should look into that as well and I except your point about pointing out everybody else who has contributed to the problem.

    Any valid point Sussman tried to make with this post was obscured by overblown rhetoric (e.g., “There is blood on the hands of politicians who refuse to admit evil exists in our midst.”), misleading quotations, and outright confusion about who is presently in power in the U.K.  Blaming a local (if prominent) politician in a minority party that has not governed nationally since 2010 for a terrorist attack in a completely different city based on that politician’s rhetoric of inclusion is a funny way to kick off a serious policy discussion.  Khan’s tourism slogan did not set U.K. immigration policy.

    It should also be noted that, as far as I can tell, Khan certainly didn’t give “the finger” to his voters.  London as a whole voted against Brexit (I’m glad they lost!), and last I checked, Khan doesn’t have a national constituency.  But then, I guess it is always the other side of the partisan divide that is viewed as “undemocratic.”

    • #33
  4. Mike LaRoche Inactive
    Mike LaRoche
    @MikeLaRoche

    Only three words need be said about the Islamists and their enablers: “Drive them out!”

    • #34
  5. ModEcon Inactive
    ModEcon
    @ModEcon

    NYLibertarianGuy (View Comment):
    Any valid point Sussman tried to make with this post was obscured by overblown rhetoric (e.g., “There is blood on the hands of politicians who refuse to admit evil exists in our midst.”), misleading quotations, and outright confusion about who is presently in power in the U.K. Blaming a local (if prominent) politician in a minority party that has not governed nationally since 2010 for a terrorist attack in a completely different city based on that politician’s rhetoric of inclusion is a funny way to kick off a serious policy discussion. Khan’s tourism slogan did not set U.K. immigration policy.

    It should also be noted that, as far as I can tell, Khan certainly didn’t give “the finger” to his voters. London as a whole voted against Brexit (I’m glad they lost!), and last I checked, Khan doesn’t have a national constituency. But then, I guess it is always the other side of the partisan divide that is viewed as “undemocratic.”

    First off, I somehow doubt that tonight’s article was meant to start off a policy discussion. Any such discussion would be fruitless given the circumstances. Second, I don’t think a little eloquence (even if overstated) is problematic in this case, can’t you just let it be for the night? Third, you can’t tell me that Labour hasn’t done its best to delay or stop altogether the new movement against immigration policies (I think there was a court case or two against the government by Labour) and I think the example of Trump should have informed everybody that just because you are nominally in charge doesn’t allow you to effectively govern. Also, you clearly don’t know about America’s sanctuary policies if you think that a local politician can’t influence national issues especially in immigration. I don’t know if Khan has done anything like that, but I think I heard of a similar plan forming in London led by Khan or Labour.

    Basically, I am just saying that your “not defense of Khan” is not really a good part of this thread. I am not saying that you don’t have a valid point to make, just that you aren’t doing it well here. I don’t want to be part of the “stop saying anything on the matter” type. But, I think your time and place isn’t the best. Besides, I must say that you haven’t convinced me of anything except your disbelief that local politics can effect national politics which doesn’t say much for your argument.

    And yes, Khan is giving the finger to UK voters on national issues since national issues are not just about London. maybe London likes islamic no go zones and unfettered immigration, but I doubt the rest of UK does.

    • #35
  6. TheRightNurse Member
    TheRightNurse
    @TheRightNurse

    I had no idea you grew up here.  I look forward to discussing this with you sometime where I can give you a more nuanced response.  My god.

    • #36
  7. Kozak Member
    Kozak
    @Kozak

    Dave Sussman: Sadiq Khan: London mayor says terror attacks ‘part and parcel’ of living in a major city.

    Huh. Not a problem in Tokyo. Or Warsaw. Or Budapest.

    Riddle me this, what’s the common factor?

    • #37
  8. Kozak Member
    Kozak
    @Kozak

    Dave Sussman (View Comment):

    RightAngles (View Comment):
    I’m so angry at what the mayor of London said I can barely type.

    I’m furious tonight.

    I can’t even get mad anymore.  It won’t make any difference. Except maybe average Brits will lose some other bit of their lives.  TSA style security on trains and major events for example.

    • #38
  9. Kozak Member
    Kozak
    @Kozak

    LB (View Comment):
    Has it been confirmed the explosion was caused by Islamists?

    I’ll take that side of the bet, any odds you care to make.

    • #39
  10. Kozak Member
    Kozak
    @Kozak

    NYLibertarianGuy (View Comment):
    Khan is certainly someone with a checkered past. But no more so than the Saudi royal house that the President was dancing with on Saturday. He’s certainly a potential ally.

    Yeah. Like Stalin.

    • #40
  11. Kozak Member
    Kozak
    @Kozak

    RightAngles (View Comment):

    Hoyacon (View Comment):

    NYLibertarianGuy (View Comment):Just on the side of Truth here. Dave took a quote wildly out of context. You can’t defeat an enemy you refuse to name, and you can’t win a war if you’re cutting down potential allies needlessly.

    Leaving the quote issue aside, is Khan the potential ally? https://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2016/05/is-it-islamophobic-to-draw-attention-to-sadiq-khans-links-with-extremists/#

    Wow. An excerpt (about Mayor Khan):

    Among other things, he’s the author of a book called The Lawful and Prohibited in Islam in which he justifies wife beating and discusses whether homosexuals shours be killed. Most notoriously, he condones ‘martyrdom operations’, i.e. suicide bombings, against Israeli civilians, which he describes as ‘God’s justice’: ‘Allah Almighty is just; through his infinite wisdom he has given the weak a weapon the strong do not have and that is their ability to turn their bodies into bombs as Palestinians do.’ In spite of holding these views, Qaradawi is not an ‘extremist’ in Khan’s eyes.

    A textbook Moderate Muslim.

    • #41
  12. Seawriter Contributor
    Seawriter
    @Seawriter

    JustmeinAZ (View Comment):

    I remember some quote about being so open-minded your brains fall out.

    Here.

    Seawriter

    • #42
  13. Columbo Inactive
    Columbo
    @Columbo

    RightAngles (View Comment):

    NYLibertarianGuy (View Comment):

    Dave Sussman (View Comment):

    RightAngles (View Comment):
    I’m so angry at what the mayor of London said I can barely type.

    I’m furious tonight.

    Really bad faith smear of Mayor Khan here Dave. He said terrorism has become part and parcel of living in a major city. That is a factual, not a normative statement. He never said that people shouldn’t do anything about it.

    With what part of Mayor Khan’s statement do you take issue? Do you disagree that people who live in cities should always be vigilant about possible terrorist attacks? Should city officials be encouraging complacency? Or do you think city officials should not be “reassured that every single agency and individual involved in protecting our city has the resources and expertise they need to respond in the event that London is attacked”?

    For the avoidance of any doubt, tonight @davesussman linked to an article reflecting a statement Mayor Khan made in September, not to a statement about this evening’s bombing.

    That is the kind of Alinsky-ite nonsense I would expect from the PC crowd, not reasoned discourse from a logical conservative. Is there a spin you could put on the Mayor’s September 2016 statement that casts the Mayor in a bad light? Sure, if you want to play a game of semantics. I think we would all profit from considering his entire statement in context.

    I can’t for the life of me understand why Libertarians are aligning with the Left.

    That man behind the curtain is not a libertarian.

    • #43
  14. Seawriter Contributor
    Seawriter
    @Seawriter

    Kozak (View Comment):
    Not a problem in Tokyo. Or Warsaw. Or Budapest.

    Not really a problem in Houston, DFW, or San Antonio, either. And Houston has a sizable Muslim population.

    There was an attempted terrorist attack in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, but the perpetrators were shot dead before they could do anything. Yeah, there was the thing at Fort Hood, but it occurred on a Federal reservation during a period when the Executive Branch was ignoring warnings and the victims (despite being in the military) were disarmed.

    What is the common thread there?

    Seawriter

    • #44
  15. She Member
    She
    @She

    Kozak (View Comment):

    RightAngles (View Comment):

    Hoyacon (View Comment):

    NYLibertarianGuy (View Comment):Just on the side of Truth here. Dave took a quote wildly out of context. You can’t defeat an enemy you refuse to name, and you can’t win a war if you’re cutting down potential allies needlessly.

    Leaving the quote issue aside, is Khan the potential ally? https://blogs.spectator.co.uk/2016/05/is-it-islamophobic-to-draw-attention-to-sadiq-khans-links-with-extremists/#

    Wow. An excerpt (about Mayor Khan):

    Among other things, he’s the author of a book called The Lawful and Prohibited in Islam in which he justifies wife beating and discusses whether homosexuals shours be killed. Most notoriously, he condones ‘martyrdom operations’, i.e. suicide bombings, against Israeli civilians, which he describes as ‘God’s justice’: ‘Allah Almighty is just; through his infinite wisdom he has given the weak a weapon the strong do not have and that is their ability to turn their bodies into bombs as Palestinians do.’ In spite of holding these views, Qaradawi is not an ‘extremist’ in Khan’s eyes.

    A textbook Moderate Muslim.

    To be clear, because I don’t think it is in the excerpt quoted above, Mayor Khan did not write the book, The Lawful and Prohibited in Islam, which was written by Yusuf Al-Qaradawi, billed as a “Muslim scholar.”

    • #45
  16. Scott Wilmot Member
    Scott Wilmot
    @ScottWilmot

    James Delingpole had a fascinating podcast (April 5) with Tommy Robinson of the English Defense League. It confirmed my view that Islam is incompatible with the West. We have our heads in the sand if we don’t see Islam as our enemy.

    • #46
  17. EHerring Coolidge
    EHerring
    @EHerring

    RightAngles (View Comment):
    I’m so angry at what the mayor of London said I can barely type.

    The Londoners chose him. Much of this is a self-inflicted wound there, as it will be here in due time.

    • #47
  18. Susan Quinn Contributor
    Susan Quinn
    @SusanQuinn

    I can’t bear it. The bouncing among the emotions of anger, hopelessness, compassion for the victims, the naivetee of the politicians . . . sometimes it is just. too. much.

    • #48
  19. Seawriter Contributor
    Seawriter
    @Seawriter

    Susan Quinn (View Comment):
    I can’t bear it. The bouncing among the emotions of anger, hopelessness, compassion for the victims, the naivetee of the politicians . . . sometimes it is just. too. much.

    The politicians are not naive. Just politically correct.

    Seawriter

    • #49
  20. A-Squared Inactive
    A-Squared
    @ASquared

    Dave Sussman (View Comment):

    RightAngles (View Comment):
    I’m so angry at what the mayor of London said I can barely type.

    I’m furious tonight.

    Did you read the actual article you posted. Below are two excerpts from the article you linked to:

    The Mayor of London revealed he had a “sleepless night” after the recent bombing in New York, and said major cities around the world “have got to be prepared for these sorts of things” to happen when people least expect them.

    “That means being vigilant, having a police force that is in touch with communities, it means the security services being ready, but it also means exchanging ideas and best practice”, Mr Khan told the Evening Standard shortly before a meeting with New York mayor Bill de Blasio.

    “The terrorists are evolving their tactics and we have got to evolve our response to them all the time. I am afraid the consequences of a terror attack are very very scary. They want to kill. They want to maim and terrify. It is my job to try to make sure that we are as safe as we can be.”

    Which part of that excerpt do you find objectionable or disagree with?

    • #50
  21. Melissa Praemonitus Member
    Melissa Praemonitus
    @6foot2inhighheels

    The Western World’s tepid response to the scourge of Islamic terrorism has condemned our children to learn history the hard way.

    • #51
  22. Concretevol Thatcher
    Concretevol
    @Concretevol

    Dave Sussman (View Comment):

    RightAngles (View Comment):
    I’m so angry at what the mayor of London said I can barely type.

    I’m furious tonight.

    I agree but until the people that voted for that clown are just as mad it won’t matter.  It’s civilizational suicide.

    • #52
  23. Miffed White Male Member
    Miffed White Male
    @MiffedWhiteMale

    Kozak (View Comment):

    LB (View Comment):
    Has it been confirmed the explosion was caused by Islamists?

    I’ll take that side of the bet, any odds you care to make.

    • #53
  24. The Reticulator Member
    The Reticulator
    @TheReticulator

    NYLibertarianGuy (View Comment):
    Really bad faith smear of Mayor Khan here Dave. He said terrorism has become part and parcel of living in a major city. That is a factual, not a normative statement. He never said that people shouldn’t do anything about it.

    I read the more complete article and see that you have a good point. I’ve been burned by (for example) WSJ and Drudge headlines enough times already that I should have known. However, if after the next school shooting someone points out that in large, impersonal school systems these things are going to happen, the gun control crowd will take that statement out of context until kingdom come.

    • #54
  25. Lily Bart Inactive
    Lily Bart
    @LilyBart

    A-Squared (View Comment):
    Which part of that excerpt do you find objectionable or disagree with?

    The part where he’s talking like this, but is not likely going to do anything meaningful to prevent it from happening again.

    Because this sounds like the ‘same old same old’:

    “That means being vigilant, having a police force that is in touch with communities, it means the security services being ready, but it also means exchanging ideas and best practice”, Mr Khan told the Evening Standard shortly before a meeting with New York mayor Bill de Blasio….

    This too:

    ……major cities around the world “have got to be prepared for these sorts of things” to happen when people least expect them.

    “things” didn’t happen.  They were attacked.

    • #55
  26. Concretevol Thatcher
    Concretevol
    @Concretevol

    The Independent’s twitter feed wins the stupidest tweet of the year when they said last night “the proper reaction to this terror attack is continue to do what we’ve been doing.”   Then they went back to bashing Trump.  lol

    • #56
  27. Concretevol Thatcher
    Concretevol
    @Concretevol

    This reaction could not have been more predictable……

    • #57
  28. Lily Bart Inactive
    Lily Bart
    @LilyBart

    A-Squared (View Comment):
    The Mayor of London revealed he had a “sleepless night”

    Really?   I don’t really care what kind of night he had.  Think what kind of night the families of the victims had.

     

     

    • #58
  29. Dominique Prynne Member
    Dominique Prynne
    @DominiquePrynne

    RushBabe49 (View Comment):
    They elected him! They must want what they are getting.

    Yes, they did.  Those who voted for him were either Muslim (so they know he will ultimately be “their ” mayor) or they were stupid and voted their Pollyanna views of kumbaya and “We are the World” and felt like such good modern post-nationalists for voting for a symbol of diversity as the Mayor of such a major city.  Elites and those that follow them are all drinking the same sauce…aspirational “Co-exist” clap-trap!  If I were a murderous dictator or an anti-western political zealot, I would promote this elitist view all day long…come to think of it, the status  quo is the perfect Trojan horse for this!  Brilliant!

    • #59
  30. Ekosj Member
    Ekosj
    @Ekosj

    A-Squared (View Comment):

    Dave Sussman (View Comment):

    RightAngles (View Comment):
    I’m so angry at what the mayor of London said I can barely type.

    I’m furious tonight.

    Did you read the actual article you posted. Below are two excerpts from the article you linked to:

    The Mayor of London revealed he had a “sleepless night” after the recent bombing in New York, and said major cities around the world “have got to be prepared for these sorts of things” to happen when people least expect them.

    “That means being vigilant, having a police force that is in touch with communities, it means the security services being ready, but it also means exchanging ideas and best practice”, Mr Khan told the Evening Standard shortly before a meeting with New York mayor Bill de Blasio….

    “The terrorists are evolving their tactics and we have got to evolve our response to them all the time. I am afraid the consequences of a terror attack are very very scary. They want to kill. They want to maim and terrify. It is my job to try to make sure that we are as safe as we can be.”

    Which part of that excerpt do you find objectionable or disagree with?

    This very same speech could have been given by the mayor of Oklahoma City regarding tornados.    Like they are random, natural occurances.    Dangerous.  Tragic.    But nothing you can do.    Just be vigilant.    Respond quickly and effectively.     Not one word about the cause.    Nothing about the perpetrators.    Not a peep about prevention.   He should be talking about creating a Europe where terrorist acts aren’t part and parcel of life.  But he won’t.    Because he know where that line of inquiry leads and he won’t go there.

    Speculative / rhetorical question.    If the terrorists were militant Catholic IRA white people do you think Kahn’s response would be the “part and parcel”  stuff or more muscular talk about rooting out the militant Catholic Irish perpetrators and their networks and their philosophy so this never happens again?

    • #60
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