Mapping the “climate of hate”
My column today contrasts the White House and media responses to the Tiller murder with their silence on the deadly military recruiter attack. In the latest developments on the recruiter case, more targets were reportedly found on Abdulhakim Mujahid Muhammad’s computer. Yesterday, investigators said he told them “he would have killed more soldiers had they been in the parking lot.”
Don’t miss the heart-wrenching interview with the father of murdered Pvt. William Long here.
Still no comment from President Obama…
Update: Finally, a White House statement. L-a-m-e.
***
Climate of hate, world of double standards
by Michelle Malkin
Creators Syndicate
Copyright 2009
When a right-wing Christian vigilante kills, millions of fingers pull the trigger. When a left-wing Muslim vigilante kills, he kills alone. These are the instantly ossifying narratives in the Sunday shooting death of Kansas late-term abortionist George Tiller versus the Monday shootings of two Arkansas military recruiters.
Tiller’s suspected murderer, Scott Roeder, was white, Christian, anti-government, and anti-abortion. The gunman in the military recruiting center attack, Abdul Hakim Mujahid Muhammad, was black, a Muslim convert, anti-military, and anti-American. Both crimes are despicable, cowardly acts of domestic terrorism. But the disparate treatment of the two brutal cases by both the White House and the media is striking.
President Obama issued a statement condemning “heinous acts of violence” within hours of Tiller’s death. The Justice Department issued its own statement and sent federal marshals to protect abortion clinics. News anchors and headline writers abandoned all qualms about labeling the gunman a terrorist. An almost gleeful excess of mainstream commentary poured forth on the climates of hate and fear created by conservative talk radio, blogs, and Fox News for reporting Tiller’s activities.
By contrast, President Obama was silent about the military recruiter attacks that left 24-year-old Private William Long dead and 18-year-old Private Quinton Ezeagwula gravely wounded. On Tuesday afternoon – more than 24 hours after the attack on the military recruiting center in Little Rock – President Obama held a press conference to announce his pick for Army Secretary. It would have been exactly the right moment to express condolences for the families of the targeted Army recruiters and to condemn heinous acts of violence against our troops.
But President Obama said nothing. The Justice Department was mum. And so were the legions of finger-pointing pundits happily convicting the pro-life movement and every right-leaning writer on the planet of contributing to the murder of George Tiller. Obama’s omission, it should be noted, comes just a few weeks after he failed to mention the Bronx jihadi plot to bomb synagogues and a National Guard airbase during his speech on homeland security.
Why the silence? Politically and religiously-motivated violence, it seems, is only worth lamenting when it demonizes opponents. Which also helps explain why the phrase “lone shooter” is ubiquitous in media coverage of jihadi shooters gone wild – think convicted Jeep Jihadi Mohammed Taheri-Azar at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill or Israel-bashing gunman Naveed Haq who targeted a Seattle Jewish charity or Los Angeles International Airport shooter Hesham Hedayet who opened fire at the El Al Israeli airline ticket counter– but not in cases involving rare acts of anti-abortion violence.
Even Jeffrey Goldberg of the left-leaning Atlantic magazine noticed the double standards. He called attention to a National Public Radio report on the military recruiter attack that failed to mention the religion and anti-military animus of the suspect. Wrote Goldberg: “Why not tell people what is actually happening in the world? We saw this a couple of weeks ago, when the press only gingerly acknowledged that the malevolent though incompetent suspects in the synagogue bombing-conspiracy case in New York were converts to Islam. How is the public served by this kind of silence? The extremist Christian beliefs of George Tiller’s alleged murderer are certainly relevant to that case, and no one in my profession is hesitant to discuss them. Why the hesitancy to talk about the motivations of the man who allegedly killed Pvt. William Long?”
The truth is that the “climate of hate” doesn’t have just one hemisphere. But you won’t hear the Council on American Islamic Relations acknowledging the national security risks of jihadi infiltrators who despise our military and have plotted against our troops from within the ranks – including convicted fragging killer Hasan Akbar and terror plotters Ali Mohamed, Jeffrey Battle, and Semi Osman.
You won’t hear about the escalating war on military recruitment centers on the op-ed pages of the New York Times – from vandalism to obstruction to Molotov cocktail attacks on campus stations across the country; to the shutdown of a Pittsburgh military recruitment office by zealots holding signs that read “Recruiters are Child Predators;” to the prolonged harassment campaign against the Marine recruiting center in Berkeley, where Code Pink protesters called America soldiers assassins; to the bomb blast at the Times Square recruiting center last March.
And you’ll certainly hear little about the most recent left-wing calls to violence by a Playboy magazine writer who published a vulgar list of conservative female writers and commentators he said he’d like to rape (the obscene slang word he used is not printable). The list was hyped by the magazine’s publicity team and light-heartedly promoted by mainstream publications such as Politico.com (founded by Washington Post reporters).
Is it too much to ask the media cartographers in charge of mapping the “climate of hate” to do their jobs with both eyes open?
See what others have said
Note from Michelle: This section is for comments from michellemalkin.com's community of registered readers. Please don't assume that I agree with or endorse any particular comment just because I let it stand. A reminder: Anyone who fails to comply with my terms of use may lose his or her posting privilege.
Comments
You must be logged in to post a comment.
First, they came for the Catholics
January 31, 2012 10:51 PM by Michelle Malkin
181 CommentsThe March for Life 2012
January 23, 2012 10:21 AM by Michelle Malkin
132 CommentsShredding Kathleen Sebelius
October 28, 2011 10:03 AM by Michelle Malkin
155 CommentsObama: All troops out of Iraq by end of year
October 21, 2011 01:00 PM by Michelle Malkin
191 CommentsAccording to Nancy Pelosi, 11 House Democrats are Willing to Allow Women to ‘Die on the Floor’
October 14, 2011 08:46 AM by Doug Powers
52 CommentsArab Fall, Arab Fail: Coptic Christians slaughtered in Egypt; Plus: Nadarkhani update
October 10, 2011 11:34 AM by Michelle Malkin
46 CommentsPastor Nadarkhani update: Bogus charges, renewed call for action
October 4, 2011 11:18 AM by Michelle Malkin
20 Comments
Categories: Abortion,Double standards,Islam
Sister Toldjah
» Video: A president of the People, and for the People
Pundit & Pundette
» Oh my: Santorum sweeps


AmSpecBlog
» Thoughts on the Santorum Sweep
Hot Air
» Video: The Obama 2012 fashion show!
Riehl World View
» Santorum Kicked The Mitt Out Of Romney
Hot Air
» Santorum sweeps back into the race








WarEagle82,
James Greenridge is Michael Steele’s pen name.
This shows you one reason why you won’t see much on NBC about the murder of Private Long. This video is posted on Drudge, and shows what a left wing spineless little tool Brian Williams is. Pathetic is as pathetic does.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLYtHHxTTmc
Oh, good.
Speaking of the map of hate in America…
it seems that Al Sharpton, criminal, race-baiter, murder-inciter par excellance is now the running buddy of THE ONE.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0609/23256.html
What next…?
I wonder how America might have turned out if in 1859 the GOP had simply said:
Agreed. The same can be said about abortion. While Americans became lazy on the subject, babies died. I am to believe that being lazy on the subject to win fence sitters is a GOOD thing? Not ever going to happen. All other things being equal, I will take the pro-life candiate. Most of the time I will take them anyhow as they tend to have more conservative values to begin with.
I had never thought of this until I heard this comment a couple weeks ago. The “Law of the Land” after 1857 was “mandated” by the U.S. Supreme Court in its decision regarding Dred Scott.
Slaves were private property. They had no rights.
This evil was overtunred how? By another court ruling? Nope…It was overturned by the Emancipation Proclamation of 1863 when Abraham Lincoln basically told the Supreme Court to take a hike.
Oh if we had a President who would emancipate the unborn. After he issued it you could sit and enjoy the TV shot of the blood shooting out of the Head of Planned Parenthoods eyes.
Is this true? It explains a lot.
Planned Parenthood = Murder for Profit
Many of these vile people have grown wealthy by murdering babies here and abroad.
Mengele murdered because of a warped ideology. Abortionists do their evil for money and personal profit. And then the abortionists often turn around and call capitalists and corporations evil, murdering pigs…
In reference to the Democrats and Republicans, as an aquatiance of mine once said, “They both feed out of the same trough.” It is approaching the time we, the American citizens, take back country.
WarEagle82: That was pretty much lincolns view.
Fixed it. I could not resist, because it read like a Michael Steele comment.
There is nothing new in the MSM’s treatment of the Dr. Tiller murder and the MSM’s wilful refusal to condemn the murder of two soldiers by a Muslim fanatic. It was only a few weeks that New York Times resident Iran apologist Roger Cohen refused to condemn suicide bombings that killed Israelis. Cohen blasted Israel “for attempting to conflate its dispute with the Palestinians with the global war on terror”. Cohen went on ad nauseum about how suicide bombings against Israelis are somehow less despicable than suicide bombings in his native UK. Fortunately, Mr. Cohen writes in such a boring style that few people pay attention to his lackluster columns (His speaking style is even more boring, if that is possible). But the attitude that killings of Israelis or killings of American soldiers are not really anything more than a reasonable protest is the predominate view at the New York Times and The Guardian.
Lincoln also commanded a large ARMY that could ENFORCE his proclamation against anything any court could say.
Rags, need I be corrected here?
He would actually have to be presidential before he could comment, dont hold your breath, he more than likely could care less.
On June 3rd, 2009 at 1:51 pm, SicSemperTyrannus said:
And why would the First Amendment call for a “free press,” if not to keep the public informed about the government?
I bet Obama (and Holder) would have had something to say if those racist thugs harrassing people at the polls, the New Black Panthers, were gunned down.
Obambi’s silence is deafening.
You keep wishing along with that “hope and change…”
And it would be true. That is what it is called when you murder innocents.
You mean no liberal TV station (most of them) said anything. Tiller deserved condemnation.
May he rest in pieces like the fetuses he routinely and callously dismembered.
I know this is OT, but actually the Emancipation Proclamation was an executive order Lincoln issued as CIC of the Army and Navy. It was basically a military proclamation and was nonbinding on many slave states. What was important about it is that slaves that did escape and were able to make it to an army camp were considered free. There were lots of these camps and they have some great photos at the Library of Congress website. I was priviledged enough to be invited to the Lincoln symposium @ the LOC back in March and learned quite a bit.
He’s too busy filming a spoof interview with NBC for the Tonight Show. From Drudge:
http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/06/03/the-tonight-show-with-president-obama/
So, with Abdulhakim Mujahid Muhammad’s computer’s files/info and his “he would have killed more soldiers had they been in the parking lot” comment he is innocent – according to his lawyer. Heh!
Obama, as I predicted, will not condemn the killer. He is his brother, after all!
What was it Obama said about his honoring the troops “unlike his predecessor”??? Gag!
Why does that not surprise me?
Excellent column, Michelle.
Condolences to the Long family and a speedy recover to Private Ezeagwula.
Didn’t he write in one of his books, that he would stand on the side of Islam? The one and only time he didn’t lie.
EXCUSE ME?!?!?!
Check out the link below – but don’t bother trying to sign up – THIS is VERY prominently displayed …………………….
“Please Complete the Following Enrollment Form:
“This service is not available in the United States”
“Truth” and “Transparency”, my aching a$$!!!
Link. Nevermind that he’s currently bragging about his Muslim roots – but WE are not to question where his loyalties lie?
Lying sacks of fecal matter ………………….
Semper Fi’
DM
I don’t know which is worse, that there was no comment from Obama OR that what they are saying now is there will be a statement but it is being prepared.
So why does one need a “prepared” statement in this kind of situation if it isn’t going to be totally political?
It is clear the anti-military sentiment, the pro-Islam or fear of Islam, the pro-abortion bias all added up to produce the severe disparity in coverage.
Disgusting.
But no surprising.
Sorry, I was working. Lincoln, as I understand the story, actually countermanded the first emancipation proclamation, which was issued by Charles Freemont. Freemont was a truly fascinating character in our national history. Anyhow, Freemont issued an emancipation order in that part of the territory he was charged with holding. Lincoln was appalled at the implications of that kind of move, and had it reversed.
Lincoln was not impeded too much by the Constitution, as many of us know. The Supreme Court was not about to get in his way in his drive to preserve the Union. But, for Lincoln, the freedom of the slaves was a secondary matter.
Still waiting for a comment from our President about the murder of one of our young soldiers shot dead in Arkansas by a Muslim convert. HELLO, HELLO MR. PRESIDENT, EARTH CALLING OBAMA, COME IN PLEASE. . . .
GEE, I GUESS HE IS BUSY CARRESSING HIS GOLD NECKLACE BLING THAT SAUDI ARABIA GAVE HIM.
Where is global climate change when you really need it?
On June 3rd, 2009 at 9:01 pm, Ragspierre said:
The freedom of the slaves was a central matter for Lincoln, long before he became President. Have you studied what Lincoln said about slavery during the Lincoln-Douglas debates?
Sure. Have you reconciled what I related, and the fact that the Emancipation Proclamation was very selective in the states that it effected?
Look, there are a LOT of myths about Abe. He was a consummate politician, and a lot of stuff done by his friends was pure cronyism. The term “shoddy” was coined during the Civil War, as I understand, to describe the quality of material supplied to Union troops by FOAs.
The facts don’t refute his great deeds. They just demystify the man.
It really does depend on an individual’s world view as to what registers on their radar as important, and how to understand it. Clearly we have a culture that has a different world view than that of the conservative mind.
The same culture gave us a President Obama.
This is a LOW blow. People have a bad habit of kicking allies in the plexus for telling them that their gameplan is faulty. Many many more of the millions unborn you care about will die ad infinitum if this country permanently takes a socialist/left turn — which it’s gradually in the process of becoming. If you want to call it sacrificing millions of unborn in the meanwhile of fixing this to prevent such a catastrophe later, so be it. One-track passions can blind and take your eye off what needs to be done to achieve a beneficial political goal — even if yours is not squarely in the sights, and it won’t help the unborn squat by turning people whose sympathies and votes you need OFF just from a single issue. It makes us look like zealot nuts — and who wants to follow such? Society dropped the ball by simply chuckling at permissive attitudes and now we’re reaping the amoral mess. When you have the majority of high school and college students shrugging at the idea of abortion and gay prom queens and gutter rap speak, you are in deep uphill moral doo-doo that will take generations to reverse even if you started now with God-knows what carrot. I DO know that shoving single issues like abortion in peoples faces without converting their hearts and minds first is extremely counterproductive. That’s no theory. I’ve lived it. A prevailing pro-life mind-set is always better than Nazi-like imposed bans, and that’s where pro-lifers should start; hit those schools and campuses and start converting the unwashed so you later DON’T have to battle in the streets for hollow rootless legal “victories”.
All I can say is protests feel good but sowing heartfelt ballots most matters.
James Greenidge
Queens, NY
Well summarized, JamieD!
And I wouldn’t hold my breath waiting fo the left to figure that one out.
Well, if they’re sitting on the fence, what makes YOU so certain which side they’ll fall off when pushed? Huh? Basically your whole post says to me that money and politics is more important to you than the chance for life itself.
I was adopted at birth so I can share something personal about having that chance. By shear luck I encountered the obstetrician who delivered me back in the early 50′s when he was stone drunk; in vino veritas. He spilled two pieces of information about my bio-mom that I’m certain he would not have otherwise – she was “un-wed” and she was “very young”.
Yes, she certainly fit the profile of a woman who would have considered finding a doctor to perform a back-room abortion but, obviously she did not. Considering that abortions were as illegal as armed robbery back then, did she choose to have me because of the law or because she cared about my life?
I do not know the answer to that and either do you but ask me if I really care to know the truth versus comfortably assuming the latter? One thing is for certain, for one reason or the other, here I am!
Here I am while millions of MY slain brothers and sisters were denied the chance be here to reply to messages from people like you. If they were somehow able to reply to you, what do YOU think they would have to say about sacrificing THEIR chance at life for the purpose of political expediency? How would ANYONE react to the idea that their very LIFE was expendable for a political party?
Well they are not here, they are not able to reply to you, so, even if I am the only person to do so – I speak for them. But, in God’s eye, there is no reason on this earth that we should not ALL speak for them ….including YOU.
How ’bout we first test the waters of that idea by proselytizing the virtues of honesty followed by legalizing theft to see how things turn out? Hey, it’s only a test of your theory and nobody gets killed finding out if it works or not.
Interesting point, DWD!
Kudos to you!
From the John Yoo thread. Our own dirt-clod on the map of hate.
Really, what is the contribution of something like this?
I called ILMC on being a race baiter. I guess now it wants to just be a plain ol’ Communist.
All connection to reason and equanimity seems to have left poor ILOVEMYCUBA. She’s just a hater, seems to me.
#124 – I’d be shocked except truthfully, nothing shocks me much since Jan. 20th, 2009. Notice who pays for this “service” to “Citizens of the World”. I guess “We the People” (now known as “We who pick up the tab”) failed the “Citizens of the World” test.
Great column, Michelle.
Rags: Just shows us the level of discourse by IHateMyself and its ilk.
I suppose it is not a bad thing that our domestic enemies put themselves into clear focus….
Don’t get me wrong…I LOVE forensic argument. I HOPE to engage with people who disagree.
But a bomb-thrower who just does drive-by posts that really say nothing but, “You suck, I hate you, die” serves no real purpose on a thread. We all know that’s a common moonbat feeling, and anyone here could predict what they’ll say.
I agree – commenters like that contribute nothing and detract from MM’s hard work at presenting us with informative lead reports.
Rage with a keyboard has no place on any blog: people who exhibit this behavior are just too emotional charged with negativity to engage in reasoned argument and persuasive dialog.
***
Tuesday 9 June–0900 MST. Laura Ingraham has Private William Long’s father–Daris Long–on for an interview.
***
Pvt. Long’s dad–Marine Corp. Veteran–and his family are a real patriotic group. Despite the loss of a fine son–his strength, courage, and love for the U.S.A. come shining through their grief.
***
May God bless and comfort them all. Here is what real service to our country looks like. Not like “community organizing”.
***
John Bibb
***