German Fascism is okay.
Italian Fascism is okay.
Protestant extremism is okay.
Catholic extremism is okay.
BUT DO NOT SAY ISLAM fascism or ISLAM jihad!
Steve Emerson was on Hannity and Colmes a couple of nights ago. Poor Alan Colmes. He just can’t rise above a sophomoric debate strategy. Steve Emerson calls him on his inability to debate. Wait, its not that he can’t debate as much as that he doesn’t have an argument to begin with! Maybe Colmes would do better if he actually was arguing a valid point. Who knows.
Its actually kind of embarrassing to watch. Emerson wipes the floor with Colmes and in the end, Colmes embarrassingly says something like, ‘well, but …. yo mama’.
Alan Colmes claims that using the term ‘Islamofascism’ is “extremely insulting to an entire religion.” As a matter of fact, Mr. Colmes claims that any pejorative term combined with ‘Islamic’ is offensive, because it makes Islam in its entirety look bad.
What this interview actually shows is the degree of Mr. Colmes’ ignorance. While he most likely has good intentions, Alan Colmes is perpetuating the notion of an Islamic monolith, the very notion that presents the main obstacle in separating moderate Muslims from Islamists, or (and I know Mr. Colmes would vehemently object to us using this term) Islamofascists. No moderate Muslim who is secure in his beliefs would be offended by the term ‘Islamofascism’. Muslims who would object to this term are Islamists, because being labeled Islamofascists makes it harder for them to whitewash Islamism in general and terrorism in particular. (People who are still living in the pre-September 11 world and do not understand the difference between Muslims and Islamofascists, should read this post.)
We are asking Alan Colmes:
Please stop being offended for us. All you’re doing is hindering our efforts to educate the public on difference between us, moderate Muslims and them, Islamofascists. The faster West is educated on the subject, the faster Islamofascism will be defeated. Islamofascism is an accurate description, not a derogatory term. And Mr. Emerson calling you an apologist for Islamic extremism is also an accurate description, not an insult. It is time to discard your PC prism and see the world for what it is, not for what you want it to be.
Excellent points MAS! I wish I had said that so well. It is ludicrous to claim that calling something what it is is insulting. That’s why Colmes couldn’t hold up his end of the debate. He didn’t have a solid argument to stand on.
I’m Southern - there are many types of Southerners. I wish people understood that, but they don’t and generally lump us all into the same stereotypes - its a sort of similar situation. It would be better for us all to drop the PCisms and call things what they are so that we understand better what we are dealing with.
Thank you for coming by and commenting.
Emerson, a Jew who gets it
A perspective of a moderate Muslim
At the risk of sounding anti-Semitic, I want to say this: either American Jews are completely clueless about the internal struggle inside Islam or they are so cowardly, that they are even afraid to voice their opinion. Or maybe it’s a combination of both.
Every time there is a development that involves radical Islam, be it a Mayor of New York attending an Islamist parade, DOJ’s officials attending an Islamist conference, or a protester being sued for having the balls to expose an Islamist-sponsored event at an amusement park, the American Jewish community is as quiet as a church mouse. It’s like it is not even there.
The effect of this silence is devastating. Not for the Jewish community, not yet. That time is still to come. The silence affects the American Muslim community. Every time moderate Muslims are ignored and Islamists are legitimized (by either direct support from government representatives or silent support of the ADL), radicals gain ground. In the current PC climate, moderate Muslims have pretty much no choice but to keep their mouths shut.
Luckily for us, not everyone in the Jewish community is like that. There are some Jews that are speaking out. One of them is Steven Emerson, who has been warning the West about the dangers of Islamic fundamentalism since before PanAm 103. Most of his current work is focused on exposing the radicals masquerading as the moderates – those radicals who are embraced by the DOJ and the Pentagon, by the mayor of New York Bloomberg (Rudy would never get into bed with terrorist supporters) and the Treasury Department, by the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security, by the Congress and the White House.
There is a war of ideas within Islam, and moderate Muslims are losing. Most of Muslim clergy and Muslim establishment are paid for by the Wahhabis. Moderate Muslims are being run out of Mosques and community centers, and in many cases are physically threatened. Moderate Muslims have no place in the media or public debate, because the place reserved for Muslims is filled by Islamic radicals, who attempt to make criticizing anything Islamic a taboo. According to the Islamists, a Muslim can do no wrong.
1. When a non-Muslim criticizes Islam or Muslims, he/she is an Islamophobe.
2. When a Muslim criticizes Islam or Muslim, he/she is not a real Muslim, therefore see #1.
This is a tactic used by “moderate” Muslims, the darlings of the government and the media. But how can you call someone who praises bin Laden, or has ties to Hamas, or calls for the elimination of Israel, or wants to replace the Constitution with the Koran a moderate? They are anything but moderates, however nobody except for a few people like Steven Emerson seems to notice that. But even when the Emersons of America appeal to the public, they are often being dismissed as alarmists and racists. Well, they are anything, but. You don’t have to be a clairvoyant to predict the future when it comes to expansion of radical Islam and extinction of moderate Muslims. All you need to do is get your heads out of the sand.
Why our government is so forgiving and forgetful when it comes to individuals or organizations with known terrorist ties and anti-American views is beyond me. Why the Jewish leaders are so timid when it comes to the subject of radical Islam is incomprehensible.
I thank God every day for people like Steven Emerson, because they are the last glimmer of hope for moderate Muslims.
K.M.
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