[Peace-discuss] Bush's Willing Executioners

[David Green]

  I think that this post is relevant to the discussion about Hitler's Willing Executioners. The first part of the post is from the Not In My Name list, and the second copies Friedman's column. The first part is apparently from Anya Cordell, who is a prominent peace activist in Evanston.
  I think it's relevant because of the clear desensitization toward anti-Arab racism that is apparent in (liberal) Friedman's columns, and the dissemination of this poem in the media. Goldhagen claims that that anti-Semitism was inherent in German culture, and they didn't need much to go over the edge. I think that's wrong, just as it's wrong that anti-Arab racism is inherent in American culture. It's been gradually fostered through a long-term process, resulting in the sort of thing that you can read about below, as well as the case of Sami al-Arain (see Democracy Now today), etc.
  With the broad dissemination of this "poem" in the mainstream media, I think it's fair to say that in propaganda terms, we're about where Nazi Germany was in 1934. Of course, all this is legitimated by an alleged concern with anti-Semitism. Parallel to the tactic of using Arabs to defame Arabs, if one were looking in the 1930s for Jewish support for the idea that Jews were basically economic parasites, one would have found agreement among Zionists, and as has been shown, plently of rhetoric to support fascist ideology.
  DG
   
  American Jewish Committee uses Friedman's anti-Arab poem in ads 
  Posted by: "MichaelLevin11 at aol.com" MichaelLevin11 at aol.com   michaellevin11   Thu Mar 15, 2007 11:02 am (PST)   [ancordell]

ALERT:

Anti-Arab, Anti-Muslim fervor feeds off itself, and
grows rapidly

Thomas Friedman's anti-Arab poem is now read on radio,
as part of American Jewish Committee ad, and elsewhere

On March 2, in the New York Times, a piece by Thomas
Friedman called "The Silence That Kills" quoted a
poem, each line of which began with a negative quality
and ended with "...you are in an Arab country". It
was a horrifying indictment of whole peoples and
cultures, that Friedman obviously agreed with and
supported, as, apparently, did his editors and the
publisher of the Times.

Today, on WBBM radio in Chicago, excerpts of this poem
were read as a commercial by the sponsor of Charles
Osgood's "The Osgood Files" (from CBS feed), which is
the American Jewish Committee. A friend called me,
appalled, and I did some research. Turns out the poem
was also quoted by William Bennett (now calling
himself "Bill Bennett") on his conservative radio
program. It is obviously rippling outward, and is
probably being quoted on many blogs, podiums and
pulpits by now.

David A. Harris, executive director of American Jewish
Committee (ajc.org) started his piece by saying "an
incredible poem appeared in the New York Times a few
days ago", which clearly was meant to give it more
weight and credibility.

I did some research on the poem's author, Wajeha
al-Huywaider who is, quite evidently, a courageous
Saudi woman activist, but whose own struggles have,
apparently, led her to speak and write in gross
generalizations. Here's another quote:

"Ladies,...It doesn't matter where the man comes
from,...because he's hopeless, from head to toe, as
long as Arab blood runs in his veins"

Just because she is Arab does not make her
generalizations valid.

The AJC piece, omitted from the poem some lines that
were in Friedman's version:

"When you find that the large majority of people
oppose freedom and find joy in slavery..."

"When land is more important than human beings"--

"...you are in an Arab country"

I can only guess that the first line seemed too
inflammatory and the second hit too close to home.

Charles Osgood is one of the revered radio
personalities, and his Osgood Files have a vast
listenership, so sponsoring this program must a)cost a
fortune and b)be considered a fair price to pay by AJC
to associate their message with such a popular affable
radio celeb. When I was first learning about how
racism gets indoctrinated, this was called "poisoning
the cookies", how Grandma might put you on her lap and
feed you your favorite cookies, while making remarks
about how you mustn't play with those 'other' children
down the block. The message got linked to the
cookies, and you know the rest.

I think we should be writing/calling CBS, the Osgood
producers, or Osgood, himself, rewriting the New York
Times editor, publisher and president about how
insidious and dangerous is their choice to let
Friedman run wild (write wild, write for the Times, at
all).

By the way, here's another quote from Friedman:

"The Muslim extremists are starting a
civilizational war. It all begins when they bomb our
cities, forcing us to treat ALL MUSLIMS (my caps) here
as potential terrorists. This is going to pit us
against them."

Here's the piece from the AJC, followed by a letter I
sent them (though I think that contacting them is
probably a waste of time)

Source:

http://www.ajc. org/site/ apps/nl/content2 .asp?c=ijITI2PHK oG&b=849241& ct=3623349

**If you are unable to view the HTML content below,
refer to the URL provided above.**

Press Releases
AJC Radio Message: Saudi Poem Depicts Stark Realities
of Middle East

March 5, 2007 - New York - American Jewish Committee
Executive Director David A. Harris, in his national
radio commentary, shares a Saudi poem that opens a
window into the stark realities of the Arab world.
Harris delivers weekly messages on the CBS radio
network, airing during the Osgood File. All AJC radio
commentaries since 2001 are available at www.ajc.org.

The full text of this week's commentary follows:

The other day, the New York Times published an
extraordinary poem by a Saudi author. The poem is
circulating throughout the Arab world. MEMRI (Middle
East Media Research Institute) provided the English
translation.

Here are excerpts:

When you cannot find a single garden in your city, but
there is a mosque on every corner - you know that you
are in an Arab country.

When religion has control over science - you can be
sure that you are in an Arab country.

When you hear the clerics saying that democracy is
heresy, but seizing every opportunity provided by
democracy to grab high positions - do not be
surprised, you are in an Arab country....

When you discover that a woman is worth half of what a
man is worth, or less - do not be surprised, you are
in an Arab country....

When fear constantly lives in the eyes of the people -
you can be certain you are in an Arab country....

These are brave and unflinching words. They should
help us better understand the stark realities of the
Middle East.

Visit us at ajc.org.

This is David Harris of the American Jewish Committee.
------------ --------- --------- --------
Below, my letter to the president of AJC (E. Robert
Goodkind) and David A. Harris

March 14, 2007

Re. David A. Harris’ AJC radio piece, which quotes
excerpts of the poem “When”, which Thomas Friedman
quoted in full and which ran in the New York Times.

How appalling that the American Jewish Committee has
seen fit to propagate such incitements as the blanket
accusations that comprise this poem. This is only
fodder that feeds stereotyping and hate, and
contributes- -not at all--to any reasonable analysis.

And, how absurd to point the finger, instead of
looking in a mirror.

“When religion has control over science”…doesn’t this
sound like the anti-evolution creationists who hold
such sway in OUR COUNTRY?

“Clerics referred to as ‘scholars’”…sounds like Pope
Benedict, whose ‘scholarship’ in speaking of Islam led
him to impugn Islam, wholesale, without reflecting on
or acknowledging Christianity’s violent history.

The lines that David Harris omitted are telling:

“When you find that the large majority of people
oppose freedom and find joy in slavery—do not be too
distressed, you are in an Arab country.”

Presumably, Harris realized this line went too far
over the edge, even for him. The claim that the
majority of inhabitants of all Arab countries “find
joy in slavery”—a patently absurd, unsubstantiated,
and mean accusation—is reminiscent of those made by
proponents of slavery who claimed that the condition
of slavery was natural to certain groups of people.
This claim is so chilling it defies understanding how
Friedman and the New York Times were able to dare to
print it, and proves that we are, indeed, in a truly
frightening cultural climate, with no holds barred
when speaking of a group that comprises 1/5 of the
world’s population.

Of course, it is illogical that if Arab people find
such “joy in slavery”, that “fear constantly lives in
[their] eyes”—a glaring contradiction in reason that
did not seem to trouble Friedman, Harris, or Bill
Bennett, who also read the poem on his radio show.

And the other omitted line:

“When land is more important than human beings—you are
in an Arab country”.

Well, it’s pretty obvious why this line was omitted by
the American Jewish Committee, isn’t it.

As a Jew, I am ashamed, appalled, and frightened that
a major Jewish organization would see fit to put forth
such incendiary accusations, with impunity.

I hope you reconsider this immediately, and withdraw
this piece from any further airing, as well as
repudiate it and its abhorrent message.
   
  Copyright 2007 The New York Times Company 
The New York Times
  
March 2, 2007 Friday 
Late Edition - Final
  
SECTION: Section A; Column 1; Editorial Desk; Pg. 17

LENGTH: 767 words

HEADLINE: The Silence That Kills

BYLINE: By THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN

BODY:


On Feb. 20, The A.P. reported from Afghanistan that a suicide attacker disguised as a health worker blew himself up near ''a crowd of about 150 people who had gathered for a ribbon-cutting ceremony to open an emergency ward at the main government hospital in the city of Khost.'' A few days later, at a Baghdad college, a female Sunni suicide bomber blew herself up amid students who were ready to sit for exams, killing 40 people. 

Stop and think for a moment how sick this is. Then stop for another moment and listen to the silence. The Bush team is mute. It says nothing, because it has no moral authority. No one would listen. Mr. Bush is losing a P.R. war to people who blow up emergency wards. Europeans are mute, lost in their delusion that this is all George Bush's and Tony Blair's fault. 

But worst of all, Muslims, the very people whose future is being killed, are also mute. No surge can work in Iraq unless we have a ''moral surge,'' a counternihilism strategy that delegitimizes suicide bombers. The most important restraints are cultural, societal and religious. It takes a village -- but the Arab-Muslim village today is largely silent. The best are indifferent or intimidated; the worst quietly applaud the Sunnis who kill Shiites.

Nobody in the Arab world ''has the guts to say that what is happening in Iraq is wrong -- that killing schoolkids is wrong,'' said Mamoun Fandy, director of the Middle East program at the International Institute for Strategic Studies. ''People somehow think that killing Iraqis is good because it will stick it to the Americans, so Arabs are undermining the American project in Iraq by killing themselves.''

The world worries about highly enriched uranium, but ''the real danger is highly enriched Islam,'' Mr. Fandy added. That is, ''highly enriched Sunnism'' and ''highly enriched Shiism'' that eats away at the Muslim state, the way Hezbollah is trying to do in Lebanon or the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt or Al Qaeda everywhere.

One result: there's no legitimate, decent, accepted source of Arab-Muslim authority today, no center of gravity ''for people to anchor their souls in,'' Mr. Fandy said. In this welter of confusion, the suicide bombers go uncondemned or subtly extolled. 

Arab nationalist media like Al Jazeera ''practically tell bin Laden and his followers, 'Bravo,' '' Mr. Fandy said. ''The message sent to bin Laden is that 'You are doing to the West what we want done, but we can't do it.' This is the hidden message that the West is not privy to. Unless extreme pressure is applied on Muslims all over the world to come up with counter-fatwas and pronounce these men as pariahs, very little will happen in fighting terrorism.''

''The battleground in the Arab world today is not in Palestine or Lebanon, but in the classrooms and newsrooms,'' Mr. Fandy concluded. That's where ''the software programmers'' reside who create symbolic images and language glorifying suicide bombers and make their depraved acts look legitimate. Only other Arab-Muslim programmers can defeat them.

Occasionally an honest voice rises, giving you a glimmer of hope that others will stand up. The MEMRI translation Web site (memri.org) just posted a poem called ''When,'' from a Saudi author, Wajeha al-Huwaider, that was posted on Arab reform sites like www.aafaq.org. 

When you cannot find a single garden in your city, but there is a mosque on every corner -- you know that you are in an Arab country.

When you see people living in the past with all the trappings of modernity -- do not be surprised, you are in an Arab country.

When religion has control over science -- you can be sure that you are in an Arab country.

When clerics are referred to as ''scholars'' -- don't be astonished, you are in an Arab country. 

When you see the ruler transformed into a demigod who never dies or relinquishes his power, and nobody is permitted to criticize -- do not be too upset, you are in an Arab country.

When you find that the large majority of people oppose freedom and find joy in slavery -- do not be too distressed, you are in an Arab country.

When you hear the clerics saying that democracy is heresy, but seizing every opportunity provided by democracy to grab high positions -- do not be surprised, you are in an Arab country. 

When you discover that a woman is worth half of what a man is worth, or less -- do not be surprised, you are in an Arab country. 

When land is more important than human beings -- you are in an Arab country. 

When fear constantly lives in the eyes of the people -- you can be certain you are in an Arab country.

URL: http://www.nytimes.com

LOAD-DATE: March 2, 2007 
   

 
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