BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU SAY

When Joy Behar and Whoopi Goldberg huffed off the stage of their own program, it made news.  It was the flounce heard round the TV world.  Their guest, Bill O'Reilly, had just made a statement with which they vehemently disagreed.  Some thought their hissy fit was contrived drama.  Nah.  I think they both hate O'Reilly enough to do it for real.  So what did the man say?

O'Reilly was explaining a point he made about why the President was declining in the polls....and in the process, he used the words "...and when the Muslims attacked us on 9/11...".  That was when the fur flew.   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bp891YJw_VY 

The women of political correctness thought he should have been more explicit.  "It was Muslim extremists, not Muslims!" they cried.  Things escalated.  O'Reilly said if anyone had misunderstood what he said, he was sorry.  But they felt he made the remark on purpose.  Whoopi later went on to say "was he talking about Kareem Abdul-Jabbar?  He's a Muslim.  O'Reilly should have been more specific."

Do you know anyone who is afraid of a basketball player?  "Me eever" (as Nate would say).  But a case COULD be made for fear of other Muslims.  Were the ladies saying that we should step carefully because Muslims might be the recipient of backlash?  Perhaps, but it would seem logical that such a backlash would have happened right after 9/11.  I think most Americans understand who to fear.

If Muslims were just a religious choice, they might be less pervasive.  But they are a system reaching all of society. Government and laws and education and the church and all the ways Muslims live their lives flow from the same polluted head waters.  The Muslims who came to America have tasted freedom and might have a different take on their law.  

But in Joy and Whoopi's world, our freedom is called on to parse words in order to avoid calling a problem...a problem.  Their politically correct world has a lot to ignore to hold to that tenant.  They ignore the fact that the Muslim nation of Iran is close to having a nuclear bomb for our harm, and also funds terrorist training and arms to be used against us.  Saudi Arabia, also a Muslim nation, sponsors terror and sent us the 9/11 terrorists.  Pakistan, a Muslim nation, pretends friendship while probably harboring Bin Laden and also supporting terrorism.  These are just three nations that are Muslim nations (not just Muslim extremists) who actively seek our demise.  What worldview misses this?

I guess the ladies of the View could go over to Europe and ask Angela Merkel whether she has trouble with Muslims in Germany.   http://www.news.com.au/world/german-chancellor-angela-merkels-christian-democrat-unions-websites-hacked/story-fn6sb9br-1225940962294

Or they could go to France or Great Britain and see what the French/Brits would say...

Joy and Whoopi defend the rights of Muslims as though such defense is a righteous act.  Don't miss the wild irony of such a position.  If they were Muslim women in a strict Muslim nation, they would be burka-clad (no more high heels, Joy...or outlandish outfits, Whoopi).  They would be married as a pre-teen and not allowed out of the house alone and CERTAINLY not be listened to.  If this were not so sad for women around the world, it would be hilarious.

All around the globe, there are problems with terrorism and the word "Muslim" is closely associated.  So let's not take our eye off the ball.  It is problematic to think that America has redefined the war on terrorism with a vanilla term "overseas contingency operation".  And it is problematic that in an exaggerated effort to appear righteous, some would put our country in more danger than she's in.

Juan Williams felt the sting of that "correctness" this week.  I like Juan because he is reasonable and fair-minded.  I don't agree with his positions, but I sure wouldn't FIRE him!

NPR kicked him to the curb because of remarks Juan made about Muslims.  I heard him say the remarks.  He spoke honestly and totally without mean-spiritedness.  That man doesn't have a mean-spirited bone in his body.

We have been given a wonderful gift of freedom in our country.  Speech is protected and sometimes that protection comes back to bite us.  We have weathered many bedbugs

that would hide under that freedom-of-speech blanket.  Pornography, that Westboro church-that's-not-a-church, and race hustlers come immediately to mind.  But those speech abusers feed off the old-fashioned twins, greed and power.  

This is different.  One Muslim, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, believes it is his God-given mission in life to destroy Judeo-Christian civilization.  And that destruction begins with intimidation and the diminishing of our freedom of speech.  We just need to discern who is on his side...