A press release I received this morning on the Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) mail list this morning.  The casualty figures are low because of the early hour of the release.

ADC Press Release:
ADC Strongly Condemns Bombings in London

Washington, DC, July 7, 2005—The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) is horrified by the series of bombings that rocked London’s public transportation earlier today. At this time, it is being reported that there are 2 fatalities and more than 200 casualties.

Information as to who is responsible for these latest bombings in London has yet to be confirmed. Regardless of the identity of the perpetrators of this terrible crime, ADC condemns this heinous act in the strongest possible terms. ADC urges the public and the media to proceed with caution.

ADC believes that the best plan of action to such an appalling attack is for all Americans to come together and offer support to the English people.

__________________________________________________________________________

Celebrate ADC's 25 Years of Dedicated Service to Civil and Human Rights by:

CONTRIBUTING TO AND/OR JOINING ADC
https://www.adc.org/membership/

For more information, contact Laila Al-Qatami at:

American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) 4201 Connecticut Ave. NW, Suite 300 | Washington, DC 20008
Tel: 202-244-2990 | Fax 202-244-3196 | E-mail: media@adc.org

The mainstream media probably will not have the ADC spokesperson on the air.  They'll stick to right-wingers, such as Col. David Hunt, Steve Emerson, and William Bennett, and Rabbi Smooly Boteach.  One of the complaints you will hear is that Muslim groups don't condemn acts of terrorism.  Maybe the mainstream medea don't acknowledge them when they do.
::)

I think the worst thing about this whole situation, on both sides, is that the decisions are made by extremists, and normal people suffer the consequences. None of my Muslim friends would ever approve of an act such as witnessed yesterday or on 9/11; similarly, few of my non-Muslim friends approved of the attack on Iraq. Yet we, the disapproving majority, must suffer the consequences for idiot's actions on both sides.

WE MUST NOT LET THE ACTS OF EXTREMISTS DIVIDE US ORDINARY PEOPLE!

Max's post about Arab condemnation is an illustration that these acts are abhorred by most Muslims, similar statements have been released in the UK by leading Muslim agencies. The ordinary people need to take it into their own hands to build the bridges between our communities that the terrorists on both sides want to destroy- we have the power to nullify the terrorism without resort to violence, if only we would recognise that fact!

Yes, people with goodwill should spend more of our time and energy promoting positive ideas, and not get swept into negative hateful talk.  There is bad stuff out there and it has to be dealt with, but we should try to deal with it like Gandhi and other people like him did.  Do it without playing their hate game.

And Tony Blair is an azzh()le, just like Bush.  What both those clowns do is immediately start talking about how "the terrorists are not going to change our way of life."  The first objective of both leaders is to steer talk away from political policy matters that may drive acts of terror and to make the public discourse "all of us versus all of them."

There is no justification---no justification---for bombing civilians the way those terrorists did in London on Thursday.  Unfortunately, desperate struggle leads to wrongful actions.  I did not agree with Ward Churchill's point of view that business people in the WTC towers were not innocent because they contributed to imperialist oppression.  That reminds me of the idiots who call chat shows and say the entire Muslim population must be wiped out. 
Islam does play a role in popularizing notions of "just revenge," but Islam is not the only vehicle for inspiring violence among the folks.  The point is, radical Islamic violence is the result of political oppression, and not inherent in the Muslim faith.

I think the worst thing about this whole situation, on both sides, is that the decisions are made by extremists, and normal people suffer the consequences. None of my Muslim friends would ever approve of an act such as witnessed yesterday or on 9/11; similarly, few of my non-Muslim friends approved of the attack on Iraq. Yet we, the disapproving majority, must suffer the consequences for idiot's actions on both sides.

WE MUST NOT LET THE ACTS OF EXTREMISTS DIVIDE US ORDINARY PEOPLE!

Max's post about Arab condemnation is an illustration that these acts are abhorred by most Muslims, similar statements have been released in the UK by leading Muslim agencies. The ordinary people need to take it into their own hands to build the bridges between our communities that the terrorists on both sides want to destroy- we have the power to nullify the terrorism without resort to violence, if only we would recognise that fact!


Very well said.  I couldn't agree more.

  The point is, radical Islamic violence is the result of political oppression, and not inherent in the Muslim faith.

So when the Taliban took control of Afghanistan and threatened to kill otherwise law-abiding men who shaved off their beards (in violation of Islam, I guess) it had nothing to do with Islam?  The Moslems had taken control of Afghanistan.  WHo was oppressing the Taliban at that time?  They acted in the name of religion.

You are naive.  Many MANY of the Moslem fundamentalists are SPECIFICALLY driven by a twisted view of religion.  Just as are/were the Catholic and Protestat terrorists that we see/saw in Ireland.  And just as many Protestant preachers like to condemn Catholicism, or like some processes in Israel are managed by religious leaders solely in the name of orthodox Judaism, or how some Catholic priests will say that non-Caths are all wrong.

It is not ALL political.  There are people and organizations in the world that act COMPLETELY on religious grounds, howevere twisted, and they oppress people and many times resort to physical violence.

I have no sympathy for the Islamic community as regards a "bad rap" on violence.  Where are the massive "Million Moslem Marches" on Washington or London to protest Moslem violence?  Of course not all Moslems are violent, the vast majority are not.  But the protests are too meek and mild.  Maybe they don't have the guts to stand up and call a spade a spade.  Press releases (which also ask for money) are not enuf, sorry.

And Tony Blair is an azzh()le, just like Bush.  What both those clowns do is immediately start talking about how "the terrorists are not going to change our way of life."  The first objective of both leaders is to steer talk away from political policy matters that may drive acts of terror and to make the public discourse "all of us versus all of them."

There is no justification---no justification---for bombing civilians the way those terrorists did in London on Thursday.  Unfortunately, desperate struggle leads to wrongful actions.  I did not agree with Ward Churchill's point of view that business people in the WTC towers were not innocent because they contributed to imperialist oppression.  That reminds me of the idiots who call chat shows and say the entire Muslim population must be wiped out. 
Islam does play a role in popularizing notions of "just revenge," but Islam is not the only vehicle for inspiring violence among the folks.  The point is, radical Islamic violence is the result of political oppression, and not inherent in the Muslim faith.


Sorry MaxwellSmart but I don't think Tony Blair is an AH at all - he's an honourable Christian man trying to do good.

These callous bombing acts are perpetrated by a tiny percentage of extremist lunatics who need to be rooted out - that is, if   they can be caught prior to them processing a message from above?   into their messed to up brains, that they should indeed be strapping several pounds of semtex right NOW to their poxed up bodies, and blowing themselves and others to smithereens  >:(        

So when the Taliban took control of Afghanistan and threatened to kill otherwise law-abiding men who shaved off their beards (in violation of Islam, I guess) it had nothing to do with Islam?  The Moslems had taken control of Afghanistan.  WHo was oppressing the Taliban at that time?  They acted in the name of religion.

You are naive.  Many MANY of the Moslem fundamentalists are SPECIFICALLY driven by a twisted view of religion.  Just as are/were the Catholic and Protestat terrorists that we see/saw in Ireland.  And just as many Protestant preachers like to condemn Catholicism, or like some processes in Israel are managed by religious leaders solely in the name of orthodox Judaism, or how some Catholic priests will say that non-Caths are all wrong.

It is not ALL political.  There are people and organizations in the world that act COMPLETELY on religious grounds, howevere twisted, and they oppress people and many times resort to physical violence.

I have no sympathy for the Islamic community as regards a "bad rap" on violence.  Where are the massive "Million Moslem Marches" on Washington or London to protest Moslem violence?  Of course not all Moslems are violent, the vast majority are not.  But the protests are too meek and mild.  Maybe they don't have the guts to stand up and call a spade a spade.  Press releases (which also ask for money) are not enuf, sorry.

Sure, Wahabi-type fanaticism has been around since the 17th century.  But let's not kid ourselves.  The CIA funded and fostered the Taliban to foil the Soviets in Afghanistan.  The idea that Al Qaida plants bombs because Allah commands them to kill all infidels is bogus.

I shouldn't have said Tony Blair was an A.H.  He's Labour, and he isn't the same breed as Dubya.  I just don't like the way he cozies up to Dubya, and I didn't care for his rhetoric after the bombing, but I suppose it wouldn't have served the country well to say it was partially the British government's fault!

I agree with the cosying up biz - it's so sickly.

The trouble with this country is it welcomes everyone regardless, people from all creeds, and generally that's cool, also the masses of asylum seekers (mostly genuine but many are just lagging for the freebies they get here) and are treated very well.
Ethnic minority groups have spread into massive major communities over many years all over the UK, but they integrate well, and in the main they are accepted - but it's a big kick in the teeth when you have a backlash like the cowardly bombings. Where are these peoples heads?? 

If they feel so strongly why don't they all just go miles away into the desert, hook themselves together with a giant mound of explosives and blast themselves into hyperspace - (sorry the Afterworld!!)  instead of involving innocents, we don't want to know about your extremist views and ways  >:(

...I don't think Tony Blair is an AH at all - he's an honourable Christian man trying to do good....

So, when he ordered the bombing of Iraq, and the slaughter of tens of thousands of innocent Iraqis, he was doing good?
TB has killed more innocent civilians than all the "al-quieda" attacks combined, exactly how is he a "man trying to do good"

Assuming you're not a mind reader who has studied both TB and Osama, how can you decide one is motivated by good and the other not?
Especially when you choose to side with the one who has more blood on his hands?

An honourable christian man would perhaps read the bible, (Exodus 20-13) "Thou shalt not kill"!

So when the Taliban took control of Afghanistan and threatened to kill otherwise law-abiding men who shaved off their beards (in violation of Islam, I guess) it had nothing to do with Islam?  The Moslems had taken control of Afghanistan.  WHo was oppressing the Taliban at that time?  They acted in the name of religion.

You are naive.  Many MANY of the Moslem fundamentalists are SPECIFICALLY driven by a twisted view of religion.  Just as are/were the Catholic and Protestat terrorists that we see/saw in Ireland.  And just as many Protestant preachers like to condemn Catholicism, or like some processes in Israel are managed by religious leaders solely in the name of orthodox Judaism, or how some Catholic priests will say that non-Caths are all wrong.

It is not ALL political.  There are people and organizations in the world that act COMPLETELY on religious grounds, howevere twisted, and they oppress people and many times resort to physical violence.

I have no sympathy for the Islamic community as regards a "bad rap" on violence.  Where are the massive "Million Moslem Marches" on Washington or London to protest Moslem violence?  Of course not all Moslems are violent, the vast majority are not.  But the protests are too meek and mild.  Maybe they don't have the guts to stand up and call a spade a spade.  Press releases (which also ask for money) are not enuf, sorry.


So you have no sympathy for the entire community because some members of their community are engaged in wrongdoing.  So to hell with the innocent, peace-loving people, right?  By that logic, does it also follow that no sympathy is due to the 'corrupt capitalists' working the Twin Towers because... well, they hadn't done enough to protest the questionable actions of their government?

So you have no sympathy for the entire community because some members of their community are engaged in wrongdoing.  So to hell with the innocent, peace-loving people, right?  By that logic, does it also follow that no sympathy is due to the 'corrupt capitalists' working the Twin Towers because... well, they hadn't done enough to protest the questionable actions of their government?

Right on, LJ!  This idea that the crimes of the few convict the many is extremely dangerous.  I mentioned Ward Churchill's oafish statement implying the business people in the WTC were getting their just deserts.  Shoot, I agree with Churchill on a lot of things, but not that kind of thinking.  In Stalin's purges of the 1930s, anybody who had achieved anything through personal initiative was set upon by Stalins thugs.  They were called "village kulaks."  If you had a couple of extra acres of land or a few more cows than the other peasants, you were put in the same class with the capitalist pigs and the imperialist running dogs.  Stalin, of course, knew this was horsesh*t, but it helped him push his reign of terror and his disasterous collectivisation scheme. 
Bigotry creates a bogus sense of all of us versus all of them.  That's why the right-wing likes to lump all Muslims together, and encourage everybody to hate the French.  Joe Blow who believes Rush Limbaugh doesn't see he's just being exploited.

WHo was oppressing the Taliban at that time? They acted in the name of religion.

The Russians - that's why your lot trained and armed the Taliban in the first place.  The Taliban getting into power in Afghanistan had *everything* to do with politics and basically nothing to do with religion.  What they did once they got into power was the other way round.


You are naive. Many MANY of the Moslem fundamentalists are SPECIFICALLY driven by a twisted view of religion. Just as are/were the Catholic and Protestat terrorists that we see/saw in Ireland. And just as many Protestant preachers like to condemn Catholicism, or like some processes in Israel are managed by religious leaders solely in the name of orthodox Judaism, or how some Catholic priests will say that non-Caths are all wrong.

If you're going to call someone else naive, at least check your facts - again, the Irish conflict is political; religion hasn't helped (especially the Catholic church's refusal to condemn IRA violence), but "loyalist"/"Republican" is the motivation, not "protestant"/"catholic".

What ends up killing people big time is when religious people start playing politics: Bush and Blair being prime examples of this, as is Osama.  The "believing you're right, everybody else is wrong" syndrome is much stronger in the religious.  I've said this before here a while back, but it bears repeating even if it is a little contentious: IMO, if a person believes that their "God" has a guiding influence in their life, they should on no account be allowed anywhere near political power.  It nearly always leads to tears in the end.

And where does religion end and politics begin?  If the religion of my forebears hadn't rankled the British crown, my nutty Puritan ancestors wouldn't have crossed the Atlantic in the first place!  And now the Christian Right keeps trying to drag religion back in to politics!  Don't they remember Rome versus Henry VIII and his marital proclivities?  As one of my history professors used to say, "it's a two-edged coin"!
:D ;D

I don't buy the religion angle..I DON'T BELIEVE THAT IF THEY KILL THOSE WHO DON'T BELIEVE IN THEIR GOD THEY'LL GO TO HEAVEN SO GET IT STRAIGHT..THAT'S WHAT THEY MAY HAVE BRAINWASHED THEMSELVES INTO THINKING..Watch when someone breaks away from their doctrine if others will attack them from within the community of theirs!

Just like THOU SHALT NOT KILL fanatics and the death penalty..THAT'S NOT MY COMMANDMENTS..so wear your own shoes and I'll wear mine -(if this is the arguement).If it's commentary, I respect your outlook but religious fighting excuses are one sided.


TB responsible for innocent killing..sorry..doesn't fly when did HE say LET'S GO IN AND KILL THE INNOCENTS?

But you hear the terrorists cry WE HAVE TO KILL THOSE OUTSIDERS WHO WANT FREEDOM FOR THE OPPRESSED THAT WE WERE 'CONTROLLING'!

As for good news on the war...when did those newsrags show everyone the GOOD our boys are doing on the front pages. Some tv news shows let us see them playing soccer with the kids in town and making them laugh...DID IT GET BURIED SO THEY COULD TALK ABOUT THE UNFORTUNATE KILLINGS BEACUSE THEY MAY HAVE FELT AMBUSHED?

That's what is missing.

Here's a proverb I was sent:  It's not who's right that determines who wins the war, it's who is LEFT. ;D 


onward to victory!!!

TB responsible for innocent killing..sorry..doesn't fly when did HE say LET'S GO IN AND KILL THE INNOCENTS?

Please don't insult all our intelligence with asinine comments like that.  Just because he didn't say that, doesn't clear him of responsibility for the people who died when others were carrying out his orders.

Please don't insult all our intelligence with asinine comments like that.  Just because he didn't say that, doesn't clear him of responsibility for the people who died when others were carrying out his orders.

He doesn't mean to insult your intelligence.  He's just too alien to the faculty to know any better!