Klein's Quips

« January 2006 | Main | March 2006 »

February 27, 2006

Hamas and the Western Media, Abridged Version

WESTERN MEDIA: While the Hamas charter calls for the destruction of Israel, the organization's leaders don't really mean it.

HAMAS LEADERS: No, we really mean it. We want to destroy Israel. We think it should be wiped off the map.

WESTERN MEDIA: While the Hamas charter calls for the destruction of Israel, the organization's leaders don't really mean it.

Posted by Philip Klein at 2:11 PM | Comments (0)

Hamas Nobel Peace Prize Watch

LA Times editorializes in favor of patience with Hamas:

This is a critical moment. Hamas may govern a short or a long time, but it will never again assume office for the first time. Setting a tone of constructive engagement as it begins to address an array of tough issues offers the best hope. Hamas' moderate choice for prime minister, Ismail Haniya, has taken conciliatory steps as he tries to put together a coalition of radical and moderate factions, and he deserves encouragement in this perilous task.

You can see just how "moderate" Hamas's choice for prime minister is by clicking here.

And how on earth can they say Haniyeh is taking "conciliatory steps"? In a Washington Post interview Sunday, Haniyeh suggested he would support the recognition of Israel under certain conditions. But he later denied making any such remarks, stating, "I did not say anything about recognizing Israel."

Today's LA Times editorial continues:

Given Hamas' history of violence, however, it will need to do more than appoint a few moderates to its new government.

Again, the LA Times editors are taking it as a given that Hamas has appointed moderates, even though they provide abosolutely zero evidence to back it up.

So far, Hamas has resisted changing its charter, which calls for the destruction of the Jewish state, but it has signaled its willingness for a long-term truce with Israel. That's not enough, but it's a first step.

Haniyeh said he wanted a "political" truce, not a peace agreement:

Haniyeh has demanded that Israel make a full withdrawal from lands captured in the 1967 Mideast war, release Palestinian prisoners and the return of several million Palestinian refugees and their descendants to Israel.

"Then Hamas can grant a long-term truce," Haniyeh said.

So in other words, if Palestinians are allowed to takeover Israel, then he may consider a political truce.

From the LA Times:

Israel's decision to withhold a scheduled monthly transfer of $50 million in taxes owed to the Palestinian Authority — nearly half of its monthly operating budget — is a step in the wrong direction. Customs duties and other taxes that rightfully belong to the Palestinian Authority must be transferred in an orderly way.

The United States has a policy of freezing the assets of terrorist groups, including Hamas. How is what Israel doing any different? Why is Israel held to a different standard?

LA Times:

If Hamas is given a chance to govern without interference, it will have to provide Palestinians with the clean, efficient government they thought they were voting for. In contrast, if Israel or the international community acts in a hostile manner, Hamas can blame them when things go badly. For the moment, Hamas has every incentive to avoid attacks on Israel, which would only provoke swift and unrestrained retaliation, derailing Hamas' chances to consolidate its popularity and establish a domestic policy.

Is there any doubt that Hamas will blame Israel no matter what? All they have to do is increase terrorism against Israel to provoke an Israeli response and portray Israel as the aggressor. That's the way to win friends and influence Europeans. It worked for Arafat for decades. Besides, if it chooses, Hamas can be completely corrupt, and it can cancel any future elections.

Much can still go wrong, and in the Middle East, it often does. But for now, there is a chance that restraint can keep the hope of peace alive.

When I predicted that a Hamas leader would win the Nobel Peace Prize, I thought that Hamas would at least have to put up some facade that it was willing to change its ways. But apparently, it didn't even take that. Hamas's leaders haven't even abandoned their goal of seeking to destroy Israel, and already their leaders are being called moderates. Already, Israel is being urged to show patience and restraint.

Although Hitler made his intentions well known in Mein Kampf, in the 1930s the world operated under the mistaken assumption that he didn't really mean what he said. This mistake had tragic consequences. Hamas wants to finish off Hilter's job, and the LA Times editors, along with the international community, are already acting as their enablers. Luckily, things are different this time, and the LA Times editorial board isn't running the Israeli government.

Posted by Philip Klein at 12:43 PM | Comments (0)

February 26, 2006

Israeli Official says Abbas 'No Longer Relevant'

From the Washington Post:

JERUSALEM, Feb. 26 -- Israel's acting foreign minister said Sunday that Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas "is no longer relevant" following Hamas' recent parliamentary victory, putting Israel at odds with the Bush administration and the European Union over how to continue supporting the Palestinian government.

It's hard to argue with Israel's position, and hard to understand why the Bush Administration would put any stock in Abbas. Abbas has been president of the Palestinian Authority for over a year now, and has proved too weak to disarm and reign in militant groups. How will he be able to do so now that his position has weakened? How can he control militant groups when the most dangerous group of all, Hamas, now controls the government?

And this is even if you give Abbas the benefit of the doubt by attributing his inability to control militant groups to weakness rather than a lack of desire.

Posted by Philip Klein at 7:26 PM | Comments (0)

February 25, 2006

Hamas Nobel Peace Prize Watch

The U.S. is already buckling:

U.S. to Continue Sending Palestinians Aid

By MOHAMMED DARAGHMEH, Associated Press Writer

RAMALLAH, West Bank - The United States will continue sending humanitarian aid to the Palestinian people even after a Hamas government is formed, a senior U.S. envoy told Palestinian leaders during the first high-level meeting between the two sides since Hamas' election victory.

Read the whole thing here.

These are people who just put a terrorist group in power. Why should we send them a penny of aid? Not to mention that by giving humanitarian aid to the Palestinians, it frees up money for Hamas to spend on terrorist attacks on Israeli civilians.

Posted by Philip Klein at 3:32 PM | Comments (0)

February 23, 2006

Bush and the Ports: The Postman Always Rings Twice

The Wall Street Journal has editorialized in favor of approving the sale of the ports. Among other arguments, the editorial says:

Besides, the notion that the Bush Administration is farming out port "security" to hostile Arab nations is alarmist nonsense. Dubai Ports World would be managing the commercial activities of these U.S. ports, not securing them. There's a difference. Port security falls to Coast Guard and U.S. Customs officials. "Nothing changes with respect to security under the contract," Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld said yesterday. "The Coast Guard is in charge of security, not the corporation."

In a telephone interview yesterday, Kristie Clemens of U.S. Customs and Border Protection elaborated that "Customs and Border Protection has the sole responsibility for the cargo processing and cargo security, incoming and outgoing. The port authority sets the guidelines for the entire port, and port operators have to follow those guidelines." Again, nothing in the pending deal would affect that arrangement.

Perhaps the editorial is right that security fears stemming from the impending takeover of the ports are unfounded. But as this Forbes article points out, the Bush Administration has done a lousy job of securing our ports in general. So even if the Dubai takeover itself poses no real security threat, Bush's lax port security policies will now receive more scrutiny. John Kerry tried unsuccessfully to exploit the issue in 2004, but this Dubai deal gives Democrats something to sink their teeth into.

Posted by Philip Klein at 1:16 AM | Comments (0)

Jonah Goldberg on the Left's Constitutional Issues

Jonah Goldberg says that liberals who advocate a "living Constitution" are being hypocritical in their constitutional arguments against NSA surveillance. He writes:

For the first time in decades, liberals are grasping that the "living Constitution" can grow into something tyrannical. They had no problem with the Constitution's blob-like expansion into areas conservatives cherish (nor did they care much when Bill Clinton used the Constitution in ways the anti-Bush crowd now defines as Orwellian). But now that the shoe's on the other foot, they suddenly see genius in those old fusty white men.

The problem is, you can't switch back and forth from living Constitution to dead and keep your credibility...

The whole thing here.

While Goldberg's argument has some validity, it can easily be turned around. How can conservatives who argue for a strict interpretation of the constitution suddenly be comfortable with stretching the constitution when it comes to executive power during wartime?

Posted by Philip Klein at 1:04 AM | Comments (1)

February 21, 2006

Miers and the Ports

The political ineptitude that the Bush Administration has displayed in handling the sale of six ports to a company owned by the United Arab Emirates, recalls its bungled Harriet Miers nomination. Then, as now, President Bush made a decision that makes everyone ask: What was he thinking? The decision has managed to anger conservatives as much as the Angry Left. The only person who Bush seems to have won over is Jimmy Carter.

Just as with the Miers nomination, Bush is digging himself a deeper hole, even threatening to veto any Congressional move to block the deal. Here's a president who has never vetoed a bill. He signed the campaign finance bill into law, even though he said he thought it was unconstitutional and he has signed every budget bill, even with spending growing at an alarming rate.

With the Miers nomination, Bush's supporters were asked to trust that she would be a reliable conservative. Now they are being asked to trust that the sale of the ports won't compromise national security.

As the conservative backlash grew over the Miers nomination, the Bush team attributed it to sexism.
Today, Bush accused his critics of racism:

"I want those who are questioning it to step up and explain why all of a sudden a Middle Eastern company is held to a different standard than a Great British company."

About a year ago, I wrote a column arguing that domestic security could be a winning issue for Democrats. Bush has just handed them a surefire way to exploit that issue.

Posted by Philip Klein at 11:25 PM | Comments (2)

Holocaust Denial and Free Speech

The Anti-Defamation League lost credibility today by expressing support for the court decision in Austria that sentenced British Holocaust denier David Irving to three years in jail. An ADL statement read:

"Considering Austria's history during the Nazi period, the existence of laws against expressing Holocaust denial is understandable," said Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director and a Holocaust survivor. "Irving is a key figure in efforts to legitimize Holocaust denial. At a time when the President of Iran is spreading this message of hate that Irving has propagated, the Austrian court has sent an unmistakable and important message."

Free speech requires that we have to put up with being offended now and then. As offensive as Irving's work may be, he still should be allowed to write what he wants without ending up behind bars. The way to fight back against hate speech and historical mythmaking is by disseminating truth. Sending Irving to jail allows him to become a martyr and provides him with more publicity than he otherwise would have.

Posted by Philip Klein at 11:00 PM | Comments (0)

February 18, 2006

Hamas Nobel peace Prize Watch

Cutting Off U.S. Aid to Palestinians Not Easy

Posted by Philip Klein at 2:46 PM | Comments (0)

February 16, 2006

Hamas Nobel Peace Prize Watch

Following up on my recent column, I have decided to create a "Hamas Nobel Peace Prize Watch" feature on this blog, to track the incremental ligitimization of the terrorist group. Today let's look at media reports that Hamas will likely nominate Ismail Haniyeh to be prime minister of the Hamas led-Palestinian government.

The UPI story on the nomination said. "Haniyeh is viewed as a leader of the more pragmatic wing of Hamas."

BBC reported, " Mr Haniya, considered a pragmatist..."

The NY Times says, "Ismail Haniya, viewed as one of its less radical leaders.."

After reading many news reports like those I decided to do a Nexis search on "Ismail Haniyeh" to find evidence of his so-called moderation. Here's what I came up with.

On Sept. 11, 2001 Haniyeh was firmly in the "blame America" camp. As you may recall, Palestinians celebrated when the World Trade Center and the Pentagon were attaked. An AFP story from that day read:

"Washington must seriously revise its policies in the world," Hamas official Ismail Haniyeh also said here...

After a Hamas suicide bomber killed 19 people in an attack on a Passover Seder in Israel (known as "the Passover Massacre"), a March 28, 2002 LA Times story read :

"I think the Israeli people cannot take this indefinitely," senior Hamas official Ismail Haniyeh said Wednesday in Gaza. "Anyone reading the Israeli newspapers can see their suffering. They love life more than any other people, and they prefer not to die."

I suppose it takes a "pragmatist" like Haniyeh to view another culture's love of life as an oppourtunity to advance his own culture, which celebrates death instead.

On July 31, 2002, Hamas bombed a cafeteria at Hebrew University while students were eating lunch, killing 7 people, three of them Americans. Among the nearly 100 wounded were Arabs and other foreign nationals. The following day, the LA Times story included the following quote:

"If they are going to attack our children, then they will have to expect to drink from the same poison," Hamas official Ismail Haniyeh said Wednesday in Gaza City, where hundreds of Hamas supporters poured into the streets late in the day to celebrate the university bombing and vow more attacks.

Perhaps Haniyeh is viewed as a moderate because he has suggested the pre-1967 borders would be acceptable. Of course, he only means that it would be an acceptable intermediary step before the destruction of Israel.

Leading up to the recent elections, Haniyeh said in an interview with AFP that:

"Hamas supports the establishment of a Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital in the territories occupied [by Israel] in 1967 - as an interim solution. However, Hamas will continue to maintain its views regarding the boundaries of historical Palestine, and [in terms of] refusing to recognize the legitimacy of the occupation."

Clearly it's absurd to write that Haniyeh represents the "pragmatic wing" of Hamas, because the organization is a sick death cult that doesn't have a pragmatic wing. It's like saying Hermann Goering represented the "pragmatic wing" of the Nazi Party.

Posted by Philip Klein at 11:48 PM | Comments (0)

Hamas Social Programs at Work

Should Hamas be getting international aid?

Posted by Philip Klein at 6:11 PM | Comments (0)

February 14, 2006

Hamas Leader To Win Nobel Peace Prize

In my latest column for the American Spectator, I predict that a leader of Hamas will win the Nobel Peace Prize.

Posted by Philip Klein at 1:52 AM | Comments (1)

February 12, 2006

U.S. May Cooperate With Hamas

Via Ynet News:

Despite declarations to the contrary, the United States does not reject out of hand future contacts with a Hamas-led Palestinian government, Palestinian sources said Sunday.

"There are signals arriving from the U.S. government that it does not reject the possibility of cooperating with a Hamas-led government," the sources claimed.

Even if you take that with a grain of salt, we already know that France and Russia have reached out to Hamas.

As I wrote when Hamas was elected, the election completely legitimized the terrorist group. After the results came in, there was a sense of optimism in pro-Israel circles that the Hamas victory would convince the world once and for all that the Palestinians don't want peace. But that optimism was clearly misguided.

Posted by Philip Klein at 7:06 PM | Comments (1)

February 10, 2006

Homosexuality is Like McDonalds

In an odd anology, Alan Chambers of Exodus International just compared homosexuality to fast food. "Fast food is counterfeit. It will fill you up in the short-term, but in the long-term it will kill you," he said. He tied this to homosexuality, arguing that both are based on instant gratification.

For those who aren't familiar with Exodus, according to their Website, "Exodus is a worldwide interdenominational, Christian organization called to encourage, strengthen, unify and equip Christians to minister the transforming power of the Lord Jesus Christ to those affected by homosexuality."

The speaker, Chambers, overcame homosexuality and is now happily married to a woman. "I stand before you now as a heterosexual man," he declared. Kind of the anti-http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/08/12/mcgreevey.transcript/">James McGreevey.

Posted by Philip Klein at 1:41 PM | Comments (1)

I Think It's An Unwritten Rule of CPAC...

That every speaker has to quote Ronald Reagan.

Posted by Philip Klein at 12:56 PM | Comments (1)

Everything I Need To Know I Learned at CPAC...

"You can't spell ipod without 'IP'" --Jim Prendergast, Americans for Technology Leadership.

IP stands for Intellectual Property, in case you didn't pick up on that clever word play.

UPDATE: PJ emails to tell me "Yes you can." According to this article:

The organisation that developed the MP3 format has now created software designed to prevent MP3 files being shared on p2p networks.

Posted by Philip Klein at 10:49 AM | Comments (0)

Conservatives and 2006 Elections

I'm writing from CPAC in Washington, DC where there was just a panel discussion on Republican prospects in the 2006 elections. The big question is whether grassroots conservatives will turnout for Republicans as they have in the recent past. This issue is of supreme interest to me, and the subject of an article I wrote that will appear in the March issue of the American Spectator.

Michael Barone, the author of The Almanac of American Politics, has a knowledge of Congressional districts that’s hard to match. He said current polls showing Republicans trailing Democrats in Congressional races should be viewed with skepticism, because they poll "all adults" rather than "likely voters" and traditionally Republicans have been more likely to turn out. Barone emphasized how the jump in turnout in 2004 was nearly unprecedented for both Republicans and Democrats, but Republicans won the battle because of the efforts of 1.4 million grassroots volunteers. The big question is whether Republicans will be able to replicate this, given that the inability of Republicans to control spending and do something about illegal immigration has sapped a lot of enthusiasm from conservatives. He said, however, that there is always the possibility that Democrats will shoot themselves in the foot as they have in the past.

John Gizzi, the longtime political reporter at Human Events was a bit more pessimistic about Republicans’ chances. He said you can't expect something to happen again just because it's happened in the past. And while people say that only 25-30 House races will be competitive this year, he thinks far more will seats will be up for grabs. He made the point that 14 veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars are running for the House, and 13 of them are running as Democrats. Gizzi said that given the dissatisfaction at the grassroots level, Democrats may be able to win on a theme of Iraq and corruption, even if they don't present their own vision for governing (i.e. something along the lines of 1994's Republican Contract With America).

Based on reporting I did for my Spectator article, in which I communicated with or received feedback from hundreds of conservative activists, I would say that frustration with Republicans at the grassroots level is palpable. Obviously, a lot can change between now and November, but Republican lawmakers have a lot of work to do to regain the faith of the party's base. They are mistaken if they take it for granted that conservatives will donate their time and money as they have in the past.

Posted by Philip Klein at 10:04 AM | Comments (0)

February 8, 2006

In That Case, I'll Take a Bacon Double Cheeseburger With Fries and a Chocolate Shake...

Via the NY Times :

The largest study ever to ask whether a low-fat diet reduces the risk of getting cancer or heart disease has found that the diet has no effect.

Posted by Philip Klein at 12:21 AM | Comments (0)

February 7, 2006

Bush, Lincoln and Andrew Sullivan

In a column for TCSDaily I criticize Andrew Sullivan for dubbing President Bush "King George" while revering Lincoln, who took far more extreme actions during the Civil War.

Posted by Philip Klein at 1:35 AM | Comments (2)

Islamic Dictionary

Via my friend Rich.

Posted by Philip Klein at 12:47 AM | Comments (0)

February 6, 2006

To Publish or Not To Publish?

Karol over at Alarming News argues that republishing the offensive Muhammad cartoons in a show of solidarity with the Danes is "dumb." She makes some of the same points that Ben did in my comments section when I decided to post one of the cartoons. Karol writes:

It is well-known that many Arab newspapers have featured Ariel Sharon as a bloodthirsty monster, a demon who eats children and hopes for death and destruction. Had Jews rioted at this depiction, had they set afire embassies around the world or raged in the streets, I would denounce them harshly, advise them to get a grip and to deal with real problems that face us all. But if a newspaper reprinted the cartoons in some twisted show of solidarity, I would see the paper as merely fanning the flames of conflict.

The problem with this argument is that it doesn't reflect reality. Muslim leaders aren't denouncing their coreligionists harshly, they are encouraging them to riot. And Jews don't riot, set embassies on fire or rage in the streets. They behave in a civilized manner and use their free speech rights to express their anger with anti-Semitism in the Arab world by writing about it or otherwise raising awareness.

And it must be noted that this is not an isolated example. Muslim fanatics have a long history of using intimidation to silence free speech, just look at the tragedy of the murder of Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh. Other news outlets should republish the cartoons to show Muslims that the free world will not allow itself to be at the mercy of the most violent mob.

Even if news organizations don't want to republish the cartoons in the name of solidarity, they should do so as part of covering the story. The U.S. media had no problem plastering the Abu Ghraib photos in magazines, newspapers and on television even though they were shocking, offensive, injurious to America's reputation and likely put American soldiers in Iraq in greater danger. But they printed the photos as part of covering the story. If there were a controversy over anti-Semitic cartoons, I'd want to see them for myself to understand what all the fuss was about. By avoiding publication of the Muhammad cartoons, American news outlets are neglecting a major element of the story.

Posted by Philip Klein at 7:12 PM | Comments (5)

Mustache Bowl I

After some research, I've determined that Superbowl XL was the only Superbowl in which both coaches had mustaches.

Bill Cowher

Mike Holmgren

Posted by Philip Klein at 12:08 AM | Comments (0)

February 3, 2006

Support Denmark

Posted by Philip Klein at 6:33 PM | Comments (0)

Muslim Rage Grows

AP:

Early Friday, Palestinian militants threw a bomb at a French cultural center in Gaza City, and many Palestinians began boycotting European goods, especially those from Denmark.

"Whoever defames our prophet should be executed," said Ismail Hassan, 37, a tailor who marched through the pouring rain along with hundreds of others in the West Bank city of Ramallah.

"Bin Laden our beloved, Denmark must be blown up," protesters in Ramallah chanted.

In mosques throughout Palestinian cities, clerics condemned the cartoons. An imam at the Omari Mosque in Gaza City told 9,000 worshippers that those behind the drawings should have their heads cut off.

"If they want a war of religions, we are ready," Hassan Sharaf, an imam in Nablus, said in his sermon.

About 10,000 demonstrators, including gunmen from the Islamic militant group Hamas firing in the air, marched through Gaza City to the Palestinian legislature, where they climbed on the roof, waving green Hamas banners.

"We are ready to redeem you with our souls and our blood our beloved prophet," they chanted. "Down, Down Denmark."

Reuters:

Up to 300 hardline Islamic activists in Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim country, went on a rampage in the lobby of a building housing the Danish embassy in Jakarta.

Shouting "Allahu Akbar" (God is Greatest), they smashed lamps with bamboo sticks, threw chairs, lobbed rotten eggs and tomatoes and tore up a Danish flag. No one was hurt.

In the West Bank city of Ramallah, hundreds of Palestinians attended a Hamas-organised rally, tearing up a French flag and holding up banners reading: "The assault on the Prophet is an assault on Islam".

Posted by Philip Klein at 11:38 AM | Comments (0)

Anti-Semitic Cartoons in the Arab World

Tom Gross has this collection of Anti-Semitic cartoons from Arab countries, many of which are from so-called "moderate" nations. Funny, I don't see Jewish gunmen in Brooklyn threatening to kidnap or attack any person they see from an Arab country as a result of the publication of these cartoons. But then again, Judaism actually is a religion of peace.

Link via The Corner.

Posted by Philip Klein at 10:54 AM | Comments (2)

In Other Cartoon Related News...

The Joint Chiefs of Staff sent this letter to the editor of the Washington Post, after they printed this cartoon depicting Donald Rumsfeld and a quadruple amputee soldier.

The mere act of sending this letter has provoked various degrees of criticism. Atrios said it was "creeping close" to censorship, AmericaBlog said it was "intimidation" and Brian Doherty said, the Joint Chiefs "should have better things to do with their time and the better judgment to realize that such a letter could be read in a potentially sinister way."

In my view, this criticism of the Joint Chiefs is much ado about nothing. The whole point of a letters to the editor section is to give readers the chance to respond to what is in the newspaper. By criticizing the cartoon for being tasteless, the letter was adding another perspective.

As for having better things to do with their time, it's pretty understandable that the Joint Chiefs of Staff would have an interest in maintaining morale on the home front and defending the dignity of soldiers.

When I was a business reporter, I'd get complaints all the time from companies who thought my coverage was unfair or overly critical. Sometimes I thought they were being irrational, and other times they made valid points. How is this any different? If the Joint Chiefs of Staff finds a cartoon offensive, how is it supposed to voice its opinion? By calling the editor personally? By issuing a press release? How would that be any different?

And this whole idea that it's intimidation is absurd. To intimidate, there has to be some sort of threat involved. But there was nothing close to a threat, and the letter went out of its way to acknowledge the Washington Post's freedom to criticize.

But I encourage you to read the letter to decide for yourself. I linked to the whole thing above. Here's how it ran in the Washington Post:

We were extremely disappointed to see the Jan. 29 editorial cartoon by Tom Toles.

Using the likeness of a service member who has lost his arms and legs in war as the central theme of a cartoon was beyond tasteless. Editorial cartoons are often designed to exaggerate issues, and The Post is obviously free to address any topic, including the state of readiness of the armed forces. However, The Post and Mr. Toles have done a disservice to readers and to The Post's reputation by using such a callous depiction of those who volunteered to defend this nation and, as a result, suffered traumatic and life-altering wounds.

Those who visit wounded veterans in hospitals have found lives profoundly changed by pain and loss. They also have found brave men and women with a sense of purpose and selfless commitment that causes battle-hardened warriors to pause.

While The Post and some of its readers may not agree with the war or its conduct, these men and women and their families are owed the decency of not having a cartoon make light of their tremendous physical sacrifices.

As the joint chiefs, we rarely put our hand to one letter, but we cannot let this reprehensible cartoon go unanswered.

PETER PACE

General, U.S. Marine Corps

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

EDMUND P. GIAMBASTIANI JR.

Admiral, U.S. Navy

Vice Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff

MICHAEL W. HAGEE

General, U.S. Marine Corps

Commandant of the Marine Corps

PETER J. SCHOOMAKER

General, U.S. Army

Chief of Staff

MICHAEL G. MULLEN

Admiral, U.S. Navy

Chief of Naval Operations

T. MICHAEL MOSELEY

General, U.S. Air Force

Chief of Staff

Washington

Posted by Philip Klein at 12:00 AM | Comments (0)

February 2, 2006

Prophet Muhammad: Ugly or Chick Magnet?

Amid the uproar over the Danish cartoons, Julia Gorin suggests that Islam's ban on depicting Muhammad means that he must have been an ugly man. But I'm not so sure. It sounds like Muhammad pulled a lot of chicks.

Posted by Philip Klein at 11:52 PM | Comments (0)

I Support Free Expression

Here is one of the cartoons of Muhammad from the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten that sparked anger throughout the Muslim world. Human Events Online has published more here.

I publish this image in solidarity with the Danes, as well the European newspapers that reprinted the cartoons, especially the French editor who was fired for reprinting them. I also publish this in defiance of Muslims who are trying to silence free speech, including this Islamic cleric who has called for a “day of anger,” the Palestinian terrorists who kidnapped a German citizen in the West Bank over this issue and those who threaten further attacks. Meanwhile, Michelle Malkin has this roundup of some of the U.S. news organizations that are too chicken to run the cartoons. Sooner or later Europeans are going to realize that militant Islam isn't just Israel's problem or America's problem, but a problem for the entire free world. We cannot allow civilization to cave in to every whim of these savages.

Posted by Philip Klein at 11:17 PM | Comments (6)