The Colorado Springs Independent has an interview with US talk show host Bill Maher. He is asked why he featured Geert Wilders in his religion-mocking film Religulous – “wouldn’t your hatred for racist xenophobes trump your hatred of religion?” Maher replies that he sees no contradiction:
Category Archives: USA
Tennessee mosque sues to open
A federal judge on Wednesday will consider whether to force a Tennessee county to allow a Muslim congregation to begin worshipping in its newly built mosque, which has faced strong opposition from a group of residents.
The Islamic Center of Murfreesboro and its religious leader, Imam Ossama Bahloul, sued Rutherford County on Wednesday and asked the federal court for an emergency order to let worshippers into the building before the holy month of Ramadan starts at sundown on Thursday.
Petition urges hate-crime probe of mosque fire
A progressive evangelical group has launched an online petition urging the U.S. Justice Department to investigate a July 4 fire at a Missouri mosque as a potential hate crime.
Sojourners, a Washington-based organization dedicated to social justice in a Christian context, sent out an e-mail announcing the campaign July 18. It follows an earlier plea by the Council on American-Islamic Relations for state and federal hate crime investigations of a suspicious fire at the Islamic Society of Joplin, Mo.
Bachmann defends her witch hunt
Rep. Michele Bachmann defended her attempt to root out “deep penetration” by the Muslim Brotherhood into the U.S. government Friday, writing a 16‑page letter explaining and expanding on her initial charges against Huma Abedin and others of being terrorist sympathizers.
Bachmann’s letter came in response to a challenge from a fellow Minnesota lawmaker, Rep. Keith Ellison, a Democrat who was the first Muslim elected to Congress. Ellison last week asked Bachmann for evidence to support a series of letters the Republican sent to five national security agencies demanding investigations into alleged Muslim Brotherhood infiltration in their ranks.
Pat Robertson: Dump your Muslim girlfriend
A 700 Club viewer asked Pat Robertson today if he should marry his Muslim girlfriend of three years even though he is a Christian, to which Robertson responded, “no way.” “She wants to do her Muslim thing and you want to do your Christian thing,” Robertson said, “walk away.” He urged him to pray for her to become a Christian, “and if that doesn’t work say, ‘I’m sorry, good bye’.” Robertson, who is no fan of Muslims, explained that it isn’t necessarily Christ-like to be “nice and friendly” as “he’s not gentle Jesus, meek and mild, he really isn’t.”
FBI offers $15,000 reward in Missouri mosque arson
Federal authorities are offering a $15,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and indictment of the person responsible for setting a mosque in Joplin, Missouri earlier this month.
More fairytales from Geller about the EDL’s Bristol demonstration
Having confidently predicted that “thousands” would be marching with the English Defence League yesterday to protest against the “Islamification of Bristol“, Pamela Geller has failed to explain why only a few hundred people turned out for what was advertised as a national mobilisation by the EDL.
Shifting her ground, she has now decided to emphasise the supposedly respectable, non-violent character of the EDL, reporting that they were “well-behaved” and “maintained a calm and peaceful assembly” during their Bristol protest (in contrast to their anti-fascist opponents, who Geller claims “trashed the city and assaulted police”).
Florida: Muslims say group’s police training maligns faith
Law enforcement officials across Florida have been repeatedly exposed to training on Muslim extremism “full of inaccuracies, sweeping generalizations and stereotypes,” a complaint filed Wednesday claims.
The classes have maligned the Prophet Muhammad and promulgated mistruths about Islam, according to the Council on American-Islamic Relations and a number of mosques and smaller Muslim organizations.
“It’s troubling, un-American and frankly, quite possibly illegal training,” said Hassan Shibly of CAIR, which focused its criticisms squarely on one man, Sam Kharoba, who has led a variety of classes for police through his Counter Terrorism Operations Center. “It makes us less safe and less free.”
What Communists were for Joe McCarthy, the Muslim Brotherhood is for Michele Bachmann
Michele Bachmann thinks the Muslim Brotherhood has made “deep penetration” into the U.S. government, and she wants five federal agencies to launch an investigation into its influence.
And you thought McCarthyism was a relic of the 1950s!
In a June interview with radio host Sandy Rios, Bachmann said: “It appears that there has been deep penetration in the halls of our United States government by the Muslim Brotherhood… that there are individuals who are associated with the Muslim Brotherhood who have positions, very sensitive positions, in our Department of Justice, our Department of Homeland Security, potentially even in the National Intelligence Agency.”
Florida: Muslim worker accuses UPS of bias
In the last decade, 6,600 Muslims have filed complaints with the federal government, claiming that their employers discriminated against them because of their beliefs.
But Ashraf Sarandah’s allegations against the United Parcel Service of America go way beyond the typical religious discrimination charges, according to his lawyers.
Ashraf claims that his boss at UPS called him “a monkey” over instant messenger, because of the color of his skin. And another manager allegedly followed him into the bathroom, mocked him for urinating sitting down, as Ashraf’s particular beliefs dictate, and gave him a demonstration in “how we urinate in this country.”