
 |
|
February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
|
| |
Jewish World Review
August 29, 2005
/ 24 Av, 5765
Realpolitik vs. pretendpolitik
By
Diana West
| 
|
|
|
|
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Unbowed, if unemployed, Michael Graham issued a thought-provoking
challenge as his airtime on "The O'Reilly Factor" ran down to a
break. The topic under discussion was the conservative radio host's
firing by the Washington, D.C., radio station WMAL egged on by
the terrorist-linked Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR)
for having made his case, logically, forcefully, even regretfully
that "Islam is a terrorist organization."
Before discussing Graham's final words on "O'Reilly," it's worth
mentioning that Graham's argument linking terrorism to Islam is
posted at JewishWorldReview.com in a column he wrote after the
second London Underground bombing. Sure, the stand-alone scare quote
("I. is a T.O.") collides head-on with 21st-century sensibilities,
but Graham builds his argument carefully. He makes the politically
incorrect kind of sense, supported by fact (e.g., more than one in
four British Muslims said they wouldn't tell police of a planned
terrorist attack) and observation (Islamic teachings drive terrorist
jihad), that the open-eyed child in "The Emperor's New Clothes"
would instantly recognize. But not his bosses at WMAL not, it
seems, after CAIR objected. When Graham refused to "apologize," the
ABC-Disney-owned station fired him.
All of which is what he went on "O'Reilly" to discuss, offering a
factually reasoned discourse on the controversy. (Good stats,
conceded an outgunned Bill O'Reilly.) And then, in closing, Graham
said this: "(t)ell me one terrorist attack that's going to be
stopped because we stopped this conversation" that is, by WMAL
taking Graham off the air.
An interesting notion. WMAL is no Department of Homeland Security,
but given the line the radio station decided Graham crossed over
global terrorism (jihad) and its central role in Islam, maybe it's
worth wondering whether we are safer because Michael Graham isn't
pursuing his on-air line of inquiry. Surely, we are more
"sensitive," meaning more guarded, even nervous about what is
currently permissible to say, at least according to CAIR's
enforcers. Even so, ending a conversation about jihad and Islam
doesn't end Islamic jihad. Nor does cutting the talk about links
between Islam and terrorism cut the links between Islam and
terrorism. The fact is, the train of logic doesn't change its
destination no matter how many of us radio stations, pundits,
academics, politicians hop off.
Still, thanks to WMAL, maybe we really are better protected, at
least against the sharp edges and noxious corners of reality. This
reality includes the fact that what we know as "terrorism" is
directly linked to the centrality of jihad (holy war) and dhimmitude
(non-Muslim inferiority) in Islam, no hijackings necessary. But
spare us: We live in a politically correct country, one in which the
U.S. State Department declares to the world that Americans "believe
we are part of one human family, and that the enemy of that family
are those who use the name of religion to pursue a violent and
hateful ideology that really goes against (what) ... any person of
faith believes in, no matter what that faith is."
But what if, as Michael Graham roughly wondered aloud, the violent
and hateful ideology runs through Islam itself? In America today, it
is considered better to cut the mike, seeking not the truth, but
rather a kind of security from the truth. Once the survival
strategies of realpolitik are traded in for the pipe dreams of
pretendpolitik, such security even feels safe, at least for a time.
Protected against reality, we see only good in any religion because
it is a religion. Secure from the truth, we see only liberty and
justice in any constitution because it is a constitution. Our only
problems stem from "extremism," which not only defines nothing, but
also offends no one. Or does it? Out of Great Britain this month
came a communique from nearly 40 Muslim leaders and groups. Their
message? In part to renounce the label of "extremism." They wrote:
"To equate 'extremism' with the aspirations of Muslims for Sharia
laws in the Muslim world or the desire to see unification towards a
Caliphate in the Muslim lands ... is inaccurate and disingenuous. It
indicates ignorance of what Sharia is and what a Caliphate is and
will alienate and victimize the Muslim community unnecessarily."
In other words, not only does terrorism have nothing to do with
Islam, as WMAL seems to have determined, but sharia (repressive
Islamic law) and the caliphate (Islamic empire) have nothing to do
with extremism, as Britain's Muslim leaders have explained. Clearly,
our vocabulary is shrinking as fast the ranks of bold talk-show
hosts. But isn't there so much more to talk about?
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
JWR contributor Diana West is a columnist and editorial writer for the Washington Times. Comment by clicking here.
Diana West Archives
© 2005, Diana West
|
|

Arnold Ahlert
Mitch Albom
Jay Ambrose
Michael Barone
Barrywood
Tony Blankley
Lori Borgman
Stratfor Briefing
Mona Charen
Linda Chavez
Richard Z. Chesnoff
Ann Coulter
Greg Crosby
Alan Douglas
Larry Elder
Suzanne Fields
Frank J. Gaffney
Bernie Goldberg
Jonah Goldberg
Julia Gorin
Jonathan Gurwitz
Paul Greenberg
Argus Hamilton
Victor Davis Hanson
Betsy Hart
Ron Hart
Nat Hentoff
Marybeth Hicks
David Horowitz
Jeff Jacoby
Renee James
Paul Johnson
Jack Kelly
Ed Koch
Ch. Krauthammer
Michael Ledeen
John Leo
David Limbaugh
Kathryn Lopez
Rich Lowry
Michelle Malkin
Jackie Mason
Ann McFeatters
Dale McFeatters
Dana Milbank
Jeanne Moos
Dick Morris
Jim Mullen
Deroy Murdock
Judge A. Napolitano
Bill O'Reilly
Kathleen Parker
Star Parker
Dennis Prager
Wesley Pruden
Tom Purcell
Sharon Randall
Robert Robb
Cokie & Steve Roberts
Heather Robinson
Pat Sajak
Debra J. Saunders
Martin Schram
Culture Shlock
David Shribman
Roger Simon
Michael Smerconish
Thomas Sowell
Ben Stein
Mark Steyn
John Stossel
Cal Thomas
Dan Thomasson
Bob Tyrrell
Ben Wattenberg
Diana West
Dave Weinbaum
George Will
Walter Williams
Byron York
ZeitGeist
Mort Zuckerman

Robert Arial
Chuck Asay
Baloo
Chip Bok
Dry Bones
Lisa Benson
John Branch
John Cole
J. D. Crowe
John Deering
Brian Duffy
Everything's Relative
Mallard Fillmore
Glenn Foden
Jake Fuller
Bob Gorrel
Joe Heller
David Hitch
Jerry Holbert
Lee Judge
Steve Kelley
Jeff Koterba
Dick Locher
Jimmy Margulies
Rick McKee
Michael Ramirez
Kevin Siers
Jeff Stahler
Ed Stein
Danna Summers
John Trever
Gary Varvel
Kirk Walters

Mr. Know-It-All
Dr. Peter Gott
GET A JOB! by Marty Nemko
Richard Lederer
Frugal Living
Tech Maven
On Nutrition
Bookmark These
Bruce Williams
|