I've never commented on a blog before, but couldn't resist this one.
A quick on-line search on the Westboro Baptist Church reveals that the Phelps group numbers about 100-200 people who are mostly related to Phelps by blood or marriage.
Yes, this is a hate group.
Yes, this is a nutty family. It is not in any way representative of Christianity. Sadly, we find the media leaving out needed perspective in stories involving Christian extremists. Why does the article's author mention the number of Patriot Guard members (5,000) without mentioning the number of extremeists in this so-called "Baptist Church?" Perhaps there is an anti-Christian bias at work here. Whether intentional or just sloppy, this and many other articles in the mainstream press are perpetuating an ugly image of Christians. Taken together articles like this one are not just lacking quality reporting, they are linking an image of hatred and intolerance to Christianity in general where none is deserved.
Granted, the author mentions that the members of the group are mostly related to Phelps, so the reader might reason that the number can't be very large. But that information is pretty far down in the piece. As I see it, the average reader is more likely to conclude that the group is large based on the number of Patriot Gaurd members mentioned at the top. The author also states that 14 states are considering passing laws, while, even if true, suggests the protests are nationwide.
Think I'm getting picky?
Okay, just try to imagine being a journalist (as I was for 20 years) and writing this article without mentioning the size of the group. To me, it is almost inconceivable. Journalism 101. Now imagine being the editor. Your reporter comes to you with this piece, and you don't notice that any reference to the size of this group is missing? What's wrong here? This didn't appear in a school newspaper, it's on CNN's web site.
Now that you've tried to imagine what it would be like writing this story and leaving out the size of the group, try putting the number in:
Five thousand Patriot Guard members are going around the country trying to shield the families of fallen soldiers from the protests of 100 - 200 nutty members of an extremist family in Topeka, Kansas.
Sounds kind of silly, doesn't it? Hats off to the bikers who are clearly a compassionate bunch, but it wouldn't really take 5000 of them, would it?
This is not to make light of the hate message against gays which is obviously very serious, hence the justifiable listing of this group as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.
But more perspective is clearly needed in this piece and many others. The lack of it is unfairly eroding the image of American Christianity.

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Posted by Kathleen to Thrutch at 2/28/2006 06:36:43 PM

Let's not forget that the "moderate Moslems" have also been working overtime to destroy our liberties.

Even in the Land of Aloha we got them advocating laws against "blasphemy."



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Posted by Grant Jones to Thrutch at 2/27/2006 10:12:57 AM

You're very welcome ... keep up the great work!

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Posted by Amit Ghate to Thrutch at 2/24/2006 06:43:30 PM

Aloha,

Thanks for adding me to your blogroll. :-)

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Posted by Grant Jones to Thrutch at 2/24/2006 06:40:20 PM

Well Jamal, I don't see that there were riots, burned buildings, chanting mobs -- much less violence and people killed in the example you cite. If and when that happens, (as it certainly did when the Catholic church and its ideas were taken as seriously as are Islamic ones nowadays) you can be assured that I will be just as critical of them as I am of Muslims now.

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Posted by Amit Ghate to Thrutch at 2/23/2006 02:50:14 PM

Not cited the Catholic example yet, or should I understand it is only in your nature to report on issues you can use to mock Muslims?

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Posted by jamal to Thrutch at 2/23/2006 02:37:51 PM

Thanks Emily, both for the encouragement and the link. I'll be sure to check it out -- as I often seem to need levity these days.

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Posted by Amit Ghate to Thrutch at 2/21/2006 10:54:56 AM

Good point! Multiculturalism is like altruism: only the sensitivities of the lesser, non-western cultures count.

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Posted by Myrhaf to Thrutch at 2/21/2006 10:42:34 AM

A week or so ago the cartoons were available on a number of blogs.

Wait awhile...this is just the start and I expect there will be more. Who knows they may even be humorous.

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Posted by Anonymous to Thrutch at 2/20/2006 11:45:30 PM

Amit,

That third quote, about too many in the West not understanding how seriously the Moslems take their religion, was right on the money.

Thanks for pointing it out.

Gus

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Posted by Gus Van Horn to Thrutch at 2/20/2006 01:18:43 PM

More than haunting. Radicalising. I've lost some of my best friends because of this.

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Posted by to Thrutch at 2/14/2006 11:50:01 PM

Haunting.

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Posted by Rob Tarr to Thrutch at 2/14/2006 05:28:02 PM

Grant Jones said... Edward Cline has nailed it as usual. Check out his commentary at my blog:
http://www.kalapanapundit.blogspot.com/

Or CAC:

http://64.225.237.27/default.htm

You'll be glad you did. 9:58 AM

Myrhaf said... I put up something on this today at: http://myrhaf.blogspot.com/2006/02/no-apologies-no-backing-down.html
In this post I link to a good post at Mike's Eyes.

Hi Wolfgang,

I agree with your point -- it is deplorable that individuals are put in this position because their own governments won’t perform the single thing they are charged with doing, i.e. protecting their citizens’ rights. However, I don’t think that the piece in question denies it. For instance Onkar says:

"In the face of the intimidation and murder of European authors, film makers and politicians by Islamic militants, a few European newspapers have the courage to defend their freedom of speech: they publish twelve cartoons to test whether it's still possible to criticize Islam. They discover it isn't. Muslims riot, burn embassies, and demand the censorship and death of infidels. The Danish cartoonists go into hiding; if they weren't afraid to speak before, they are now." (emphasis added)

This to me acknowledges the issue you bring up and implies that the individuals are right to be fearful. And, in fact, the cartoonists are heroes for even having tried to assert their rights, but unfortunately their government (and Western governments generally) quickly betrayed them (in the name of self-sacrifice).

Also, I think that it is important to understand that some of the discussion in the editorial is aimed at the national level while other parts apply to the individual.

Militarily and politically, the question is what should we do as a nation -- not as individuals standing alone. There is no question that, as a nation, we have the physical power to wipe out the threat, i.e. we could easily take out Iran, Saudi Arabia, Syria and any other nation that actively threatens us or sponsors those who do, but what we lack are the ideas, specifically the morality, required for us to act.

And given that we cannot act due to lack of ideas, the question then reverts to the level of the individual -- since ideas do not pertain to the group per se. And here the key is for each man to begin by first examining his premises and clarifying his own thinking and only then trying to convince others, including his nation’s leaders, of what is right and how they must act.

So, in my opinion, as of yet, it is not necessary for an individual to challenge the fundamentalist Muslims directly, but it is imperative that he work diligently to have his government and society do so. I fear, however, that if current trends continue and the West does not regain a modicum of moral certainty, soon there will be no such luxury, and every individual will have no choice but to confront Islam at every turn: either submitting to its arbitrary edicts or suffering the unspeakable consequences. (And if not Islam then some other theocractic doctrine.)

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Posted by Amit Ghate to Thrutch at 2/09/2006 04:45:37 PM

I like Onkar's analysis, but I think we should not forget one crucial point: some people prefer silence because the have angst. There are threats and acts of violence by Islamists and this atmosphere of intimidation causes people to refrain from condeming the evildoers.

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Posted by Wolfgang to Thrutch at 2/09/2006 02:00:45 AM