Seriously… I have no idea how these Congressmen and Congresswomen can say what they say with a straight face.
Pay close attention to their language… “infiltrate”?! It’s 100% normal and expected that any advocacy group encourage it’s folks to become interns in the political process. It’s happened with every single ethnic group, religious group, and industry in the history of the US. Somehow, being Muslim makes it different.
Unfortunately, the nature of a two-party system will be for people to polarize and say, “Oh, this Rachel Maddow woman is a liberal… I am not a liberal… so I disagree with Rachel Maddow.” Which, of course, is backward logic.
We (the US) used to be a nation of thinkers… not anymore… to many people are going to watch this and become emotional one way or the other. When, in reality, watching this should spark thought… it should spark investigation and exploration of ones own thoughts and feelings and why they are the way they are.
Too many people will do no such thing… after all, there are other videos one click away… there’s email… there’s football… there’s American Idol… and Rush is trying to buy the Rams…
Now, hey… Most of you know that I’m no fan of the far right or the far left for that matter… (I’m like morally on the right, culturally & foreign policy on the left, and probably financially radical… so no party represents how I feel or think… but I digress)
Chicago protesters voiced concerns over bailouts and how the financial situation is being addressed. It was completely ignored by mainstream media.
Anyway, although I am no fan of the far right, that a protest of this magnitude in downtown Chicago was ignored by the media is an injustice. There were some other parts of the political spectrum in there as well (since most people were never told why bailouts are viewed as necessary… most of us oppose them)
Instead of ignoring the protest, engage it… address it… answer peoples’ concerns. It’s impossible to please all of the people all of the time, but at least listen to and honestly consider their concerns. If you still think your stance is correct, well, at least you reflected on it.
Ignoring the concerns either depresses or radicalizes people. It certainly doesn’t win their trust.
Let me just say this… Obama inherited a horrible situation. I wouldn’t want his job, because I’d never sleep at night (I’d probably be awake vomiting between prayers… the responsibility is immense… I hope he feels it. And I wish he would read and reflect on the inaugural address of Abu Bakr (the first khaleefah after the death of the Prophet, alayhis-salaam)… I’ll find the translation & post it in a day or two, insha’Allah.
** Footnote: BTW – Just so you don’t think I’m some whacko that will take matters into his own hands… I said “financially radical” because I think interest is included in the usury of the Old Testament and riba mentioned in Qur’an. Interest-based economies are what I take issue with.
Pay special note to the comment about the difference between the corporate media response to the pirates in Somalia, the recent British-Iranian run-in, & this incident… very, very different responses.
A humanitarian aid ship which set sail for the Gaza strip has been seized by occupying Israeli forces today. The Israeli military abducted 21 human rights workers from 11 countries including former U.S. Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney and Noble laureate Mairead Maguire. The passengers and crew, though traveling in international waters, were forcibly dragged toward Israel.
Update: Cynthia McKinney has since been released… I wonder how much she’ll be allowed to say…
Amendments to the 2010 National Defense Authorization Act, which has already been passed by the House, would empower the Attorney General Eric Holder to define gun owners, anti-abortion activists and tax protesters as domestic terrorists in light of recent federal reports that classify millions of Americans as “extremists”.
Former impeached Florida judge and now Democratic Congressman Alcee Hastings has introduced amendments to H.R. 2647: National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2010, which would give Holder dictator powers to demonize legitimate protest groups as being affiliated with violent race hate organizations.
1 – It highlights one individual. Usually our media highlights one individual when that individual is Israeli. It’s bittersweet to see someone with individual coverage when they are protesting Israeli apartheid and aggression. I look forward to the day when our media cover one individual Palestinian or one Palestinian family.
2 – Crowd control measures and anti-protest measures are not benign. I am tired of media coverage that mentions “rubber bullets” and “tear gas” as afterthoughts.
3 – The reason for the protest was actually mentioned… although probably not enough. “They traveled to the West Bank to rally against the Israeli-erected barrier that could cut off Palestinian villages from valuable farmland.” No mention of starvation, inequality, military occupation, etc. No mention that the land belongs to families that depend on it for food.
4 – There were no quotes from people that would inflame the situation even more. Usually there’s what appears to be a deliberate attempt to get emotion reactions from both sides of any conflict… to give the appearance of objectivity… but we know better. Conflict sells. And finding the most emotional, irrational, non-articulate person to speak is par for the course. It’s nice to see an article (despite tragic news) that is not hitting par.
5 – The comments that follow the article are disgusting… from both ends of the spectrum.
Here’s a quote from the above link on what you can do about it:
We call on student organizations, social justice groups and concerned
individuals around the world to support students at the University of Ottawa
and the broader fight for freedom of expression.
Please take the following actions:
Email/Fax/Call the President of the University of Ottawa, Allan Rock,
demanding that he immediately restore the Charter rights of students and
send a copy of your message of support to the Director of the Communications
Office, Andree Dumulon. Please send a copy of your letter to
sphr.uofo@gmail.com
Allan Rock: email president@uOttawa.ca, fax (613)562-5103, phone
(613)562-5809
Director of communications: email adumulon@uOttawa.ca, phone (613)562-5800
ext. 315
