-Caveat Lector-
=======================
>>Rev. Falwell told CBS' Bob Simon: "I think Mohammed was a terrorist. I
read enough by both Muslims and non-Muslims, [to decide] that he was a
violent man, a man of war. In my opinion, Jesus set the example for
love, as did Moses, and I think Mohammed set an opposite example.">>
How about trying to deal with the substance of the above. . .? Islam
was founded as a tool of Arab tribal warfare and then later served as a
tool of Arab Imperialism!
That kind of thing does not appear in the New Testament though the Old
Testament is rank with it! "As did Moses" is an idiot add-in to pacify
the Jewish community!
Lloyd Miller, Research Director, A-albionic
Research
-----Original Message-----
From: Conspiracy Theory Research List [mailto:CTRL@;LISTSERV.AOL.COM] On
Behalf Of Euphorian
Sent: Friday, October 18, 2002 12:48 AM
To: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject: [CTRL] Falwell's follies
-Caveat Lector-
>From URL @ bottom
Falwell's follies
Bill Berkowitz - WorkingForChange
10.16.02 - What do civil libertarians, gays, feminists, pro-choice
advocates, pagans and Muhammad have in common? Within the past year or
so, they've all felt the verbal wrath of the Rev. Jerry Falwell. For
years, the Rev. Falwell's message of hate has been mostly a domestic
matter. His recent remarks on CBS' "60 Minutes" calling Muhammad a
"terrorist," however, caused an immediate international commotion.
Last year, shortly after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center
and the Pentagon, the Rev. Falwell told Pat Robertson's "700 Club"
audience that ". I really believe that the pagans and the abortionists
and the feminists and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying
to make that an alternative lifestyle... all of them who have tried to
secularize America. I point the finger in their face and say, 'You
helped this happen.'"
Besieged by critics and perceived as being pretty damned nasty, the Rev.
Falwell became apologetic. Well. sort of. A few days after teeing off on
the laundry list of his life-long enemies, Falwell claimed that his
comments were made "during a theological discussion on a Christian
television program [and they] were taken out of their context and
reported, and that my thoughts -- reduced to sound bites -- have
detracted from the spirit of this time of mourning." Like the politician
who tells a racist joke and then claims he didn't know he was being
recorded, Falwell claimed his words were meant only for Christian true
believers, and not for the public at large. That excuse doesn't change
the nature of his comments.
Falwell: 'Muhammad was a terrorist'
Flash forward nearly 13 months: On the October 6th edition of "60
Minutes," the Rev. Falwell told CBS' Bob Simon: "I think Mohammed was a
terrorist. I read enough by both Muslims and non-Muslims, [to decide]
that he was a violent man, a man of war. In my opinion, Jesus set the
example for love, as did Moses, and I think Mohammed set an opposite
example."
In short order, with critical comments against him mounting both at home
and abroad, Falwell claimed that he was a victim of sound bite
journalism - the real culprit was that Satanesque excuse for a
journalist, Bob Simon.
The Rev. Falwell is no victim. His situation is in no way comparable for
example to the time Connie Chung ambushed Newt Gingrich's unsuspecting
mother and got her to say some nasty stuff on network television about
Hillary Clinton. The Rev. Falwell is television-savvy; he's been a guest
on more television programs in a year than most all other religious
figures will appear on in a lifetime. On his website, the Rev.
frequently informs the faithful of his upcoming talking-head schedule.
Playing the "I was tricked" card, the Rev. Falwell told WORLD, the
weekly evangelical news magazine, that he "should have known" that CBS
would use the comments "to stir up conflict and animosity." It wasn't
that his comments were hateful, the Rev. seemed to be was saying. It was
the fact that CBS would use them that was the problem.
According to Marvin Olasky, World's editor-in-chief, Falwell said that
Simon "had called him back once the uproar began, fishing for more, and
that he had complained about CBS extracting from 1 1/2 hours of
interview tape that divisive side remark. 'I believe you exploited me
and took advantage of me as a person,' he told Mr. Simon, who quickly
got off the phone," Olasky reported.
Olasky rushed to Falwell's defense, and in his World column he declared
Simon to be "a bigot." Olasky claims that the segment on "60 Minutes"
was meant to focus on Christians and Israel, not Islam, "but Mr. Simon
in passing asked Jerry Falwell if he thought Muhammad approved of
violence, and Mr. Falwell fell into the trap. CBS then promoted 60
Minutes with the 'terrorist' sound bite, in full knowledge that it was
incidental to the thrust of the piece. The evident goal: Hype the
program, build the audience, and never mind the lack of context."
Shooting off his mouth
The Rev. Falwell has made a career out of shooting off his mouth. It is
only during these past few years that his remarks have become part of
the greater public discourse. Claiming as he did that the television
figure Tinky Winky was gay was one thing -- laughable for its utter
absurdity -- but branding the head of a religion a terrorist is a much
more serious matter.
On October 11, Canadian Press reported that at least five people were
killed in Hindu- Muslim rioting and police gunfire in western India.
According to Canadian Press, "The violence erupted during a general
strike to protest remarks" by the Rev. Falwell. In Iran to get that
country's support for a tough UN resolution against Iraq, British
Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said he regarded Falwell's comments "as
much an insult to me as a Christian as they are to Muslims."
Finally, on Saturday, October 12, the Rev. Falwell issued an apology.
According to Reuters, the Rev. Falwell said he meant no disrespect to
"any sincere, law- abiding Muslim." In a prepared statement the Rev.
Falwell said: "I sincerely apologize that certain statements of mine
made during an interview for CBS's '60 Minutes' were hurtful to the
feelings of many Muslims."
On October 14, the Associated Press reported that leaders in the two
main branches of Islam generously "welcomed" the apology. Falwell
"deserves thanks for his return to the righteous path," said Mohammed
Sayed Tantawi, the grand sheik of Al-Azhar, a Sunni Muslim mosque in
Cairo.
In the Iranian city of Qom, an important Shiite Muslim center of
learning, a high-ranking cleric said Falwell had shown courage. "A
person courageous enough to apologize for his errors is worthy of
praise," Ayatollah Hussein Mousavi Tabrizi told The Associated Press.
"It's humanitarian and good Islamic behavior to accept an apology from a
person who admits making a mistake."
As the editor of The Data Lounge pointed out on October 9, Falwell's
statement has been one link of the chain of anti-Muslim sentiment
spewing forth from fundamentalist
preachers: "Pat Robertson. called the Prophet Muhammad "a wide-eyed
fanatic" and "a killer" and denounced Islam as "a monumental scam."
Franklin Graham, son of evangelist Billy Graham, claimed that Islam is
"a very evil and wicked religion." The Rev. Jerry Vines, past president
of the Southern Baptist Convention, told an audience of several thousand
listeners at its annual conference that the Prophet Muhammad was "a
demon-possessed pedophile."
So how sincere was Falwell's latest apology? As of this writing, the
Rev. had not yet publicized either his comments or his apology at his
official website, falwell.com.
Blaming the terrorist attacks in the U.S. on his political enemies and
calling Muhammad a terrorist is pure unadulterated Falwell. The Rev.
drops a rhetorical bombshell, eventually recognizes the damage he's
done, and slips into full spin mode -- claiming victim-hood. And if that
doesn't work, he issues an apology. And while the Rev. Falwell's latest
remarks certainly add to his legacy of hate, Marvin Olasky's sprint to
his defense indicates that the Rev. will no doubt maintain his good
standing amongst some of the brethren.
CWorking Assets Online
URL: http://www.workingforchange.com/
article.cfm?itemid=13927&CFID=3154321
&CFTOKEN=19161214
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Forwarded as information only; I don't believe everything I read or send
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