Spoonflower -- Buy Original Designed Fabric

Thursday, July 28, 2011

Scandinavian Scion's Scandalous Scheme



ב"ה

Once again, Phyllis Chesler has hit the nail on the head.

In her The 5 Biggest Lies Told about Oslo Shooter Anders Breivik on Pajama Media, Ms. Chesler, in her inimitable style, debunks the media's myths about Mr. Breivik and his recent attack in Norway.

There may be people out there who secretly (or not too secretly) applaud this man’s actions, but that is not the norm. There are some who see his attack as fighting back (more in the line of self-defense) — I’m not one of them, BTW, but I certainly understand why someone wouldn’t want to be demonized (as I and my people and my land are). I can understand why someone might feel frustrated that (s)he can’t do anything to change people’s minds on this issue. But I’m a pacifist by nature (possibly reanalyzing by "nurture" or by concern for my and my family’s safety).

I doubt Mr. Breivik sees the world as I do. I worry that he has given jihad condoning Westerners more fodder; I worry that by his acts he will cause the evil ones to redouble their efforts. But I also understand the desperation people can feel looking at what appears to be an untenable situation. I in no way support the murder of misguided youth (one never knows if they would repent their evil leanings) nor the planting of a bomb that could kill and maim innocents. On the other hand, I understand a militia’s duty to protect its populous (as Israel does) or people fighting attackers who attack them (or their loved ones) directly. I can’t understand why people find it so easy to blame "Islamophobia" (which, from my POV, doesn’t really exist — it’s not a phobia, it’s a true fear, one that stems from real danger, not an irrational fear). (By the way, there are FAR more anti-Jewish incidents in the US -- let's not even talk about other places -- than there are against Muslims.) It’s so easy to blame Israel and it’s "suppressive" policies (which are what exactly?????). Few people try to find the true cause, the true evil among us, the true suppressors of freedom.

If they did, perhaps the fear of being forced into burkas and Sharia would feel a bit more real.

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Free Middle East?

ב"ה


Thanks to one of my facebook friends, I found a new and interesting web site. Free Middle East has links to a myriad of youtube videos and articles with names like "Iran's Gender Apartheid",
"A Guide to Hamas: Human Rights Record in Gaza", and  "5 Misconceptions About the Middle East". 

I don't know how many people actually read these, particularly people who are in the anti-Israel (as in "I'm not an anti-Semite, I just hate Israel" -- I discuss this previously in Is Islamophobia equal to anti-Semitism) crowd or the "moral equivalency" crowd or even the "undecided" crowd. But it's nice to see more of this. It's nice to see more and more people coming down strongly on the side of Israel, despite people like Anna O'leary,  George Soros (Tzorus  -- Yiddish for "trouble" -- is right!) and large numbers of celebrities (who are woefully under informed about the Middle East but still consider themselves "experts").

 If you find yourself in a seemingly losing battle with one of these apologists for evil, you now have a place to get more material.

But from my perspective, I think asking the "big" questions might at least make them think:

1) Do you support women's rights?
2) Do you support gay rights?
3) Do you support freedom of religion?
4) Do you support reproductive rights?
5) Do you support animal rights?

Chances are, if the person you're talking to is a supposed liberal, that person will answer "yes" to at least most of these. So then you ask, "So why are you against Israel, which supports all of the above, and pro-Hamas, which suppresses all of the above?" "Free Middle East" has many articles and videos that show just how much these rights are suppressed by Hamas or Fatah or Iran or Syria or... [insert your "favorite" Islamist state here]. I even designed a t-shirt that says, "A liberal supports..." and I list a bunch of rights and then I end with "and supports countries that support those rights, Like Israel"