Comments on: Right and Left Rhetoric on Islam http://enableate.com/steve/2006/374 make it happen Tue, 07 Sep 2010 02:10:30 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.2 By: darwin http://enableate.com/steve/2006/374#comment-864 darwin Mon, 02 Oct 2006 14:12:01 +0000 http://enableate.com/steve/2006/374#comment-864 Compare these two things he said: "while violent Islamic jihadists attacked this country, there is a constantly growing network — both organized and unorganized — of in-place apologists at virtually every level of society all ready to defend them." "I have seen this too many times to count, and the reason I call it ironic is that before 9/11, feminists routinely criticized the veil. Gay activists did not hesitate to condemn Islamic homophobia." It doesn't sound to you like he's attacking muslim culture and THINKS he's attaking Jihadists? If not why would he bring up those examples to make his point? Compare these two things he said:

“while violent Islamic jihadists attacked this country, there is a constantly growing network — both organized and unorganized — of in-place apologists at virtually every level of society all ready to defend them.”

“I have seen this too many times to count, and the reason I call it ironic is that before 9/11, feminists routinely criticized the veil. Gay activists did not hesitate to condemn Islamic homophobia.”

It doesn’t sound to you like he’s attacking muslim culture and THINKS he’s attaking Jihadists? If not why would he bring up those examples to make his point?

]]> By: boose http://enableate.com/steve/2006/374#comment-854 boose Fri, 29 Sep 2006 21:02:56 +0000 http://enableate.com/steve/2006/374#comment-854 he didn't say that at all. He said that criticizing jihadists makes people call you an islamophobe. He never says that he's against respecting middle eastern culture. However, people who were previously in favor of disrespecting middle eastern culture (think feminists, gays, etc.) now feel afraid to do so, because it's become less PC. Do their points about the lack of freedoms in islamic countries have any less of a point, or are they afraid of the 'muslim sensibilities'? he didn’t say that at all. He said that criticizing jihadists makes people call you an islamophobe. He never says that he’s against respecting middle eastern culture. However, people who were previously in favor of disrespecting middle eastern culture (think feminists, gays, etc.) now feel afraid to do so, because it’s become less PC. Do their points about the lack of freedoms in islamic countries have any less of a point, or are they afraid of the ‘muslim sensibilities’?

]]> By: darwin http://enableate.com/steve/2006/374#comment-852 darwin Fri, 29 Sep 2006 16:37:07 +0000 http://enableate.com/steve/2006/374#comment-852 Now that I think about it, it's very revealing of this blogger's own biases that he basically says 'people who want us to respect middle eastern culture are defending terrorists.' That's the type of thinking that makes everyone on the 'liberal' start feeling defensive. Now that I think about it, it’s very revealing of this blogger’s own biases that he basically says ‘people who want us to respect middle eastern culture are defending terrorists.’ That’s the type of thinking that makes everyone on the ‘liberal’ start feeling defensive.

]]> By: darwin http://enableate.com/steve/2006/374#comment-851 darwin Fri, 29 Sep 2006 16:35:17 +0000 http://enableate.com/steve/2006/374#comment-851 To this extent that this guy's accusations are true, I agree that anyone defending actual terrorists is reprehensible, and anyone who changed their mind on criticizing a culture just because people they don't like started to criticize it is a hypocrite. But I'm not sure I believe that he's fairly characterizing what's actually going on. Specificially, I'm not impressed that civil rights advocates are now jumping up to protect muslims when they weren't before, since the most obvious explanation is that innocent muslims simply weren't being persecuted before. The PC police also aren't defending people from Swahili, not because they don't think people from Swahili deserve respect, but because nobody gives a fuck about Swahili. If vocal forces started making fun of whatever the hell it is people from Swahili do, then you can be damned sure the PC police would start defending them too. To this extent that this guy’s accusations are true, I agree that anyone defending actual terrorists is reprehensible, and anyone who changed their mind on criticizing a culture just because people they don’t like started to criticize it is a hypocrite. But I’m not sure I believe that he’s fairly characterizing what’s actually going on. Specificially, I’m not impressed that civil rights advocates are now jumping up to protect muslims when they weren’t before, since the most obvious explanation is that innocent muslims simply weren’t being persecuted before.
The PC police also aren’t defending people from Swahili, not because they don’t think people from Swahili deserve respect, but because nobody gives a fuck about Swahili. If vocal forces started making fun of whatever the hell it is people from Swahili do, then you can be damned sure the PC police would start defending them too.

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