Sent to you by Sean McBride via Google Reader: Likudnik group tries to throw US elections? 15-50 million dollar anti-Muslim campaign in swing states via MuzzleWatch by Cecilie Surasky on 9/26/08 Unbelievable.
We told you about the 28 million copies of anti-Muslim propaganda film Obsession being distributed to newspaper subscribers in swing states only. (Several papers said no due to its content, most were happy to take the money and run.) No one knew much about the Clarion Fund, the mysterious group behind the production except that they coincidentally shared staff and offices with Aish Hatorah, a group that says it is dedicated to the preservation of Jewish identity, but which also runs a number of programs that promote a right-wing Israeli narrative like media watchdog HonestReporting.com, and the controversial Hasbara fellowships program which funds activities on 80 US campuses. ‘It seems that the Clarion Fund, from what we can tell, is just a virtual organisation that is a front for Aish Hatorah,’ Ibrahim Hooper, spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). Well IPS (Inter Press Service), which first established the link between the Clarion Fund and Aish Hatorah, just published this explosive investigative piece, Neo-cons, Ex-Israeli Diplomats Push Islamophobic Video,revealing that the Endowment for Middle East Truth (EMET), working with Clarion, organized the distribution, according to EMET spokesman, Ari Morgenstern. EMET is a nonprofit, non-partisan think tank essentially dedicated to educating policymakers about Israel’s and US’s shared war on terror. Well known anti-Muslim crusader expert Steve Emerson says on their site, “Emet is dedicated to providing the truth about the Arab war against Israel to members of Congress, the media and the general public.There is no more important mission than this.” Right wing extremists, even by US policy standards, they completely oppose the idea that Israel make any concessions, including withdrawing settlers or returning land, in the search for peace. Advisory board members include Daniel Pipes, James Woolsey, Caroline Glick and 3 Israeli diplomats. They seek a total change of US foreign policy. Gharib and Clifton of IPS write: Morgenstern also declined to specify the cost of the DVD distribution, but did say, ‘it costs a great deal — it’s a multi-million-dollar effort.’ Outside experts have estimated the cost of the operation, including reproduction and distribution, at between 15 million dollars and 50 million dollars. Read the entire article here. It’s really worth it. Neo-cons, Ex-Israeli Diplomats Push Islamophobic Video Oh yeah, CAIR has filed a complaint with the Federal Elections Commission. Stay tuned. Things you can do from here: - Subscribe to MuzzleWatch using Google Reader - Get started using Google Reader to easily keep up with all your favorite sites
