Anti-dhimmi Christmas (and Hanukkah) wishes from Jihad Watch Board Vice President Hugh Fitzgerald:
While wishing all who observe the day the merriest of Christmases (or Hanukkahs, which custom now holds to be "happy" rather than "merry") I also wish that you give a sobering thought to those who, though they may ardently desire to, cannot join in the celebration or the observance. About ten years ago in Saudi Arabia, for example, some British nurses were arrested for singing Christmas carols, behind closed doors, in their living quarters. They were held for a while, then expelled. That they did not receive harsher punishment was the result only of British diplomatic intervention.Then there was the more recent case of Brian O'Connor, the Indian convert to Christianity who was seized and tortured by the Saudi police for being a Christian, accused furthermore of trying to convert others.
In the late 1990s, a wealthy Kuwaiti, Hussein Qambar Ali (Robert Hussein) converted to Christianity. First his entire business was taken away from him. Then his wife, and then his children. He was left with nothing. And then he was sentenced to death. There was an outcry in Britain (it hardly got any notice elsewhere). In the end, he was not executed. I recall this story well on this Christmas Eve because I once spoke with a rich Kuwaiti contractor who had been voluble on the subject of the "real Islam" which, he said, was aggressive and violent. He enjoyed being a truth-teller just as long as I feigned ignorance of Islam and pretended to be amused – but he changed tack completely when I raised the subject of the treatment of the Kuwaiti convert. Now, sensing that I was not only listening to him, but joining in his criticism of Islam, he began to deny that the Kuwaiti convert story was true, claimed that I didn't understand all the details, etc. A sudden transformation. Similar experiences since suggest that unless someone goes all the way and makes a clean break with Islam, there is some kind of inability to recognize, or allow Infidels to recognize, the full truth. The urge to defend, to protect, the Faith kicks in. Infidels may be allowed to learn some things, but they must not volunteer criticism. That would be to accord them too much freedom.
But enough. Have a GOOD time today and tomorrow. Which good wishes remind me in turn of Sayyid Qutb. You know that Qutb, the spiritual father of so many now running around in Iraq and Afghanistan today (not to mention London, Paris, and Rome), wrote his Signposts Along the Way (Ma-alim fi al-tariq) partly prompted by his disgust with the West. And that disgust was the result of two years he spent in the United States in the late 1940s. How decadent it all was, how thoroughly un-Islamic. And do you remember what it was that offended him the most? It was the horrifying spectacle of a church social, and a square dance sponsored by a church -- where American girls and boys could swing their partners and do-si-do, and try not to step on your neighbor's toe, and now promenade. The horror, the sheer horror of it!But I recently came across in a dusty bookstore, the kind where you find in the backroom a certain forgotten book that, once you realize its contents, leads you on a frightening journey into the deep dark past, or perhaps causes you to live in fear for your life, as others, afraid of what you have discovered in that manuscript, begin to chase you down (in either case, Soon To Be A Major Motion Picture), a book that prompted me to think of Sayyid Qutb. No, I am not speaking of the Qur'an -- though some will no doubt attribute Qutb's behavior to his fervent belief in the Qur'an and Sunnah.
The book I have in mind, one which I recently bought, is called Honor Your Partner. It is described as "Eighty-one American Square, Circle and Contra Dances, with Complete Instructions for Doing Them," compiled by Ed Durlacher, with musical arrangements by Ken MacDonald and photography by Dr. Ira Zasloff. It was published by Devin-Adair in 1949, while Qutb was in this country, seeing that fiendish and insensate whirl of boy and girl. It was a sight he could never forget.
Check out the book yourself. You will not believe the things you find therein. I would like to draw your attention in particular to "A Word to the Caller" and the "rules to all dancers for a successful evening":
(1) When instructions are being given DO be quiet so that all may hear and understand.(2) Each person will be dancing with three or more others. One person can spoil the dance for everyone by being a "showoff" or ill-mannered.
(3) Have a GOOD time.
That last -- "Have a GOOD time" -- is particularly disturbing. What would Bin Laden, what would Ayatollah Khomeini, what would al-Qaradawi, what would Hassan al-Banna, what would al-Ghazzali, what would the earliest caliphs, say about that -- "Have a GOOD Time"?
No wonder Qutb went home, intent on preaching Jihad. Don't, as is fashionable, blame American "racism." Blame those square-dance fiends. Blame all those who preach "Have a GOOD time." Blame Ed Durlacher.
Blame, above all, the cheerful spirit of Christmas. This year, consider it part of your duty as an Infidel – to have a GOOD time.
Ah, yes, forced virtue, that is the Muslim way, that is heaven on earth. Such little "minds" and so little time! No wonder that among the 99 names of Allah one searches in vain for the appellation "Love."
1940's America. Hank Williams, Web Pierce, Eddy Arnold and Kitty Wells on the juke box. Check out the movie "The High Low Country" for a great post war square dancing scene with Don Walser as the caller/singer. Ole Don can yodel with the best of 'em.
yeehaw!
Merry Christmas and Happy Hannukah y'all!!
Hugh,
Thanks for the Chritmas Wishes and merry times here at JW.
Merry Christmas to you and all of yours and everyone here at JW.
Thanks and amen, Hugh!
In the spirit of not leaving anyone out . . .and out of respect to Robert's wishes that the resistance to jihad is not a liberal or conservative issue, but a human rights issue . . .I thought it would be fun to share the following PC all inclusive holiday greeting (pulled from comments at FPMag) . . . 'tis funny:
Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low-stress, non-addictive, gender-neutral celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasion and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all. I also wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2006 . . .
but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make America great. Not to imply that America is necessarily greater than any other country nor the only America in the Western Hemisphere.
And without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith or sexual preference of the wishee.
By accepting these greetings you are accepting these terms.
This greeting is subject to clarification or withdrawal. It is freely transferable with no alteration to the original greeting.
It implies no promise by the wisher to actually implement any of the wishes for herself or himself or others, and is void where prohibited by law and is revocable at the sole discretion of the wisher.
This wish is warranted to perform as expected within the usual application of good tidings for a period of one year or until the issuance of a subsequent holiday greeting, whichever comes first, and warranty is limited to replacement of this wish or issuance of a new wish at the sole discretion of the wisher."
***
Of course, if making merry in December somehow slights the other months and thus insults other cultures that have no winter festival I offer "Happy Every Day of the Year".
Or
If "Happy" is being somehow culturally insensitive and somehow alienates those who are not so happy . . .Perhaps one should offer "Feel Better Every Day of the Year" but that might stigmatize those emotionally-impaired persons. In fact, greetings of any kind could be offensive in some way so we'll have to drop that, as well, or risk hurting someone's feelings.
So, in keeping with human tradition that seems to be in the majority, perhaps we can allow "Benign Every Day of the Year" as a greeting so long as it is done without theatrics and only between two individuals who have agreed beforehand to exchange greetings.
But then again, I'm not a PC advocate, so
HAVE A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS, HAPPY CHANUKKAH and WONDERFUL NEW YEAR!
A guilty pleasure of mine is tuning in to the Lawrence Welk Show (something heartwarming about those orange suits...). Ever since the Taliban had come to power in Afghanistan, and all their ridiculous rules were publicized, I've gotten a kick out of the thought that this most innocent and wholesome of American shows is oh-so-sinful by hardline Islamic standards: Gender mixing, skirts that show explicit ankle and calf, all that dancing, you name it! That seems to underscore the ultimate absurdity of the joyless, jihadist vision of society.
Best wishes to all at Jihad Watch. Chase that baked ham with a spiked egg nog: Who knows, maybe two harams make a halal! ;)
It's Christmas Eve and I just left the supermarket because I needed to get a few things before the onslaught of the cooking begins. Even though the lines were long, we early risers chatted about what we were each doing to make the Christmas holiday special. All the checkers and stockers looked very tired and some of them, that I saw last night when I was there around midnight, were still there. But everyone was cheerful and wishing well all the other people they came into contact with. When I went outside to my car, this guy let me go before turning to leave, with a big smile on his face and when I mouthed to him, "Merry Christmas" he mouthed it right back! It was great.
This Christmas spirit that really does exist and has the power to change people's lives, even if we let it only a few days a year, is precious. I'm glad to be living in a country that allows Christianity, that was founded on it and where it still flourishes on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, even if we are living in a post-Christian age. The Christmas spirit makes everybody's lives better, even if you are not Christian.And that's why we must fight this fight, for all of us and for those who are so buried under the oppression of Islam that they can't fight back themselves. And we must never let it be extinguished, if indeed, it ever could be. And wouldn't it be great if the spirit of Christmas would inspire the children of Satan to put down their swords and embrace their neighbors with brotherly love. A tall order, but it is precisely at this time of the year that hope springs anew, and anything and everything are possible.
From Scrooge's nephew in "A Christmas Carol":
"There are many things from which I might have derived good, by which I have not profited, I dare say," returned the nephew. "Christmas among the rest. But I am sure I have always thought of Christmas time, when it has come around -- apart from veneration due its sacred name and origin, if anything belonging to it can be apart from that -- as a good time: a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time: the only time I know of, in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of people below them as if they really were fellow passenger to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys. And therefore uncle, though it has never put a scrap of gold or silver in my pocket, I believe that it has done me good, and will do me good; and I say, God bless it!"
And God bless all of you!
Merry Christmas,
Isabella
Rebecca JW
"1940's America. Hank Williams, Web Pierce, Eddy Arnold and Kitty Wells on the juke box. Check out the movie "The High Low Country" for a great post war square dancing scene with Don Walser as the caller/singer. Ole Don can yodel with the best of 'em."
In the spirit of inclusiveness, lets not forget
Basie, Glen Miller, Tommy Dorsey, and the
greatest band of all time, Duke Ellington.
Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, etc! I already
wished all of my Indian friends a happy Diwali a
few weeks ago.
Drink, dance, be merry. In honor of Sayid Qutb,
I'll cut up a koran and use it for something worthwhile, like picking up dog poop.
Further back, please. Bunny Berigan. Bix Beiderbecke. Louis Armstrong. Jack Teagarden. Fats Waller (d. December 15, 1943, on a cross-country train, from pneumonia). An all-night Edward-Hopperish Diner. Potsie. Nov Shmozz Kapop. The Little Rascals. La Guardia reading the funny papers. Will Rogers, Jr. Further back still. archy and mehitabel. Hound and Horn. Tex Guinan. Still further. Theodore Roosevelt, and "Peridaris Alive, or Raisuli Dead." John Muir. O My Darling Clementine. Luther Burbank. Mr. Dooley In Peace and War. George Washington Carver. Ingersoll's Lectures. Acres of Diamonds. Sitting Bull. Frederick Church. Albert Bierstadt. Albert Pinkham Ryder. The whalers of Edgartown, Nantucket, and New Bedford. Emily Dickinson. Emerson. "Walden." "A Week on the Concord and Merrimack Rivers." "Rappaccini's Daughter." "I am large, I contain multitudes." "The Autobiography of Frederick Douglass." Lincoln's Second Inaugural. Moby Dick and Typee and Pierre, or The Ambiguities. John C. Fremont. Daniel Webster. Henry Clay. Joel Poinsett and poinsettias. Theodore Parker. Thomas Cole and "The Voyage of Life." Jim Bowie. Davey Crockett's "Autobiography." Ammi Phillips. John Randolph of Roanoke. John James Audubon. Stephen Decatur and The Barbary Pirates. Lewis and Clark. The Natchez Trace. The Oregon Trail. Dolley Madison. Osceola. Mordechai Noah. Jefferson's "Notes on the State of Virginia." Washington's "Farewell Address." Washington's Letter to Moses Seixas ("everyone shall sit under his figtree and vine, and none shall make him afraid") The Federalist. The Constitution. Alexander Hamilton and the National Bank. Captain John Parker. Samuel Adams and the Tea Party. The Declaration of Independence ("life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness"). The Portrait of Nicholas Boylston. Poor Richard's Almanac. William Bartram and the Flora of Georgia and the Carolinas. George Whitefield and The Great Awakening. Roger Williams. William Penn. Wigglesworth's "Day of Doom." Three generations of Mathers. An Errand Into the Wilderness. There is no end to this. America.
Nothing to do with Sayyid Qutb. Nothing to do with Islam.
Now promenade.
Stephen C. Foster, Beautiful Dreamer, waken to me, sunight and dewdrops are waiting for thee...Wish I was in the land of cotton, old times there are not forgotton, look away, look away, look away, Dixie land...Way down upon the Sewannee River, far, far away, that's where my heart is turning ever... Rows of cotton pickers singing Jimmie Rogers songs in the twilight - I'm gonna California where they sleep out every night... Black folks singin, Swing low, sweet chariot, comin for ta carry me home... Fresh scrubbed, singin' in church, Rock of Ages, cleft for me, let me hide myself in thee...
An old black woman in the grocery store yesterday helped me with something and after I thanked her she said to me, "Honey, that's what we're put on this earth FOR. We're sisters."
This is America. Of thee we sing...
Cher Hugh:
Let us also not leave out Louis Moreau Gottschalk. Scott Joplin. Louis Chauvin of the "Heliotrope Bouquet," and Joseph Lamb. Ferdinand Joseph LaMothe, who was always a snappy dresser. Bryan. Brownsen and Hecker. Old Hoss Radbourn. George Herman Ruth.
Wyoming. Nebraska. South Dakota. SoHo. Arthur Avenue.
Do-si-do.
Yrs
Robt
Hugh,
I want to wish you and all your loved ones, a very joyful Christmas and a blessed and succesful new year.
Thank you for bringing up Brian O'Connor. I've been following his story for some time now. I wasn't aware of the Robert Hussein Qambar Ali case. Let's keep him in our prayers.
To Robert and his family: Also a blessed Christmas and new year.
Christ is Born: Glorify Him!
Provo
Oh, and Edward Kennedy Ellington. John Coltrane and Miles Davis. Eric Dolphy. Steven Morman Lackritz, aka Steve Lacy (RIP), Mr. Braxton, Mr. Zimmerman, and Mr. Thelonious Sphere Monk. Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus. Art Pepper. Pepper Martin. Dean Martin. Dizzy Dean. Dizzy Gillespie.
So many. So much. Your America may differ.
My America has Bing Crosby, White Christmas, Irving Berlin, Silver Bells, Gene Autry, Here Comes Santa Clause, Elvis Presley, Blue Christmas, Brenda Lee, Rockin Around the Christmas Tree, Bobby Helms, You are My Special Angel...
Admittedly, my version is cheesier.
Ah Robert, a man of taste and style.
Don't forget Mel Torme, the Jewish guy who wrote
the Christmas Song (Chestnuts roasiting on an
open fire), Sinatra, the inimitable Ella. Cole
Porter (who'd have a wall pulled on him if he
lived in Sharia land), Rodgers and Hart, all of
those Tin Pan Alley writers.
Dave Brubeck and his amazing sax player Paul
Desmond (who couldn't play in mohammadan
countries in the 50s because he was Jewish!).
Benny Carter, Clifford Brown, Max Roach, Oscar
Peterson.
I don't know what to say about Art "Buhaina"
Blakey though ;-).
I'll put on Ellington's Three Suites while
I celebrate.
King Oliver, Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Earl "Fatha" Hines -- I thought this country did away with titles. Perhaps the ban on titles was meant to apply only to those that were inherited, and the musicians listed (I deliberately omitted Prince, that pretender to all sorts of thrones) earned them.
The astounding thing about the Sayyid Qutb anecdote is that, if you asked any American today (particularly Leftists) what would be the most strait-laced and conservative, the squarest social setting imaginable, they would answer that a dance put on by a church in Arkansas in the 1940s (the one that appalled Qutb) would have to be close to #1.
Now get in a time machine and travel to the present. We Americans have evolved socially and culturally in amazing ways since then, and we would find such a church social of the 1940s to be quaint, amusing, and even (at least by the Leftists among us) repellant -- for reasons diametrically opposite to those of Qutb's -- i.e., that it was too strait-laced and "moral", and that Durlacher's notion of a "good time" is a joke compared with the good times we 21st-century secularists can indulge in now.
But most Muslims have not evolved since then. Imagine what Qutb -- appalled by a church social in Arkansas in the 1940s -- would think of (just to pick one example out of thousands of our good times now) Christina Aguilera gyrating her cleavage, belly, hips and nearly exposed butt-crack to the camera while black male dancers simulate humping her.
Well, no need to imagine what Qutb would think; no need to create a time machine to reach back and transport a Muslim from the 1940s to the present. Muslims with that unevolved medieval mindset still exist, by the millions, while the West (with America as its vanguard) has evolved culturally in astounding, breathtaking, disturbing yet also wondrous ways in just the past 60 years.
Muslim Qutbs who were appalled by 1940s American church socials must now face our Christian Aguileras: one can almost feel the verge of explosives such a culture shock can cause on that medieval brain chemistry.
Dr. Pepper, "evolved" is one way to describe our cultural changes from the 1940's to the present. Degenerated is another...
Yes, Hugh, Earl "Fatha" Hines. And Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson. David "Fathead" Newman. Mordecai Peter Centennial "Three Finger" Brown.
Merry Christmas, from El Cid and family!
I hope everyone can enjoy this most beautiful of Holidays and of course make merry.
I will look forward to quit time with my children and wife, sitting by the fire sipping wine and being very thankful for all the blessings that God provides.
I will say a prayer for all those that are persecuted, especially Christians who will se fear instead of joy because of the Islamic threat.
Merry Christmas and God bless to all and especially to Mr Spencer, Hugh and all the Jw community, they give us hope that our future will be bright.
This is a contest I am not going to win.
Contest?
Hugh. Hugh. There's no contest. Just a celebration.
Morris dances later.
Yrs
R
Its Christmas eve and tomorrow we celebrate the birth of the Prince of Peace and Love.
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL.
God Bless you all, who post here at dhimmi watch.
What? It's not a contest? Oh, okay. I better get with the program.
Hugh,
You are a very funny man.
R
Robert --
Now they know I'm a man. I wanted to keep them guessing.
Hugh,
I'm sorry, dear, I didn't mean to insult you.
I just didn't want to reveal your true identity.
By the way, that outfit you're wearing today is just smashing, and the heels set it off perfectly. But you might think about a different shade of lipstick.
Yrs
R
Hugh, you will also be pleased to know that several CDs of Gracie Allen's Surprise Party candidacy were brought out for the 2000 election.
A Politically Correct Christmas Poem
Twas the night before Christmas and Santa's a wreck...
How to live in a world that's politically correct?
His workers no longer would answer to "Elves",
"Vertically Challenged" they were calling themselves.
And labor conditions at the North Pole,
were alleged by the union, to stifle the soul.
Four reindeer had vanished without much propriety,
released to the wilds, by the Humane Society.
And equal employment had made it quite clear,
that Santa had better not use just reindeer.
So Dancer and Donner, Comet and Cupid,
were replaced with 4 pigs, and you know that looked stupid!
The runners had been removed from his beautiful sleigh,
because the ruts were deemed dangerous by the EPA,
And millions of people were calling the Cops,
when they heard sled noises upon their roof tops.
Second-hand smoke from his pipe, had his workers quite frightened,
and his fur trimmed red suit was called "unenlightened".
To show you the strangeness of today's ebbs and flows,
Rudolf was suing over unauthorized use of his nose.
He went to Geraldo, in front of the Nation,
demanding millions in over-due workers compensation.
So...half of the reindeer were gone, and his wife
who suddenly said she'd had enough of this life,
joined a self help group, packed and left in a whiz,
demanding from now on that her title was Ms.
And as for gifts...why, he'd never had the notion
that making a choice could cause such commotion.
Nothing of leather, nothing of fur...
Which meant nothing for him or nothing for her.
Nothing to aim, Nothing to shoot,
Nothing that clamored or made lots of noise.
Nothing for just girls and nothing for just boys.
Nothing that claimed to be gender specific,
Nothing that's warlike or non-pacifistic.
No candy or sweets...they were bad for the tooth.
Nothing that seemed to embellish upon the truth.
And fairy tales...while not yet forbidden,
were like Ken and Barbie, better off hidden,
for they raised the hackles of those psychological,
who claimed the only good gift was one ecological.
No baseball, no football...someone might get hurt,
besides - playing sports exposed kids to dirt.
Dolls were said to be sexist and should be passe.
and Nintendo would rot your entire brain away.
So Santa just stood there, disheveled and perplexed,
he just couldn't figure out what to do next?
He tried to be merry he tried to be gay,
but you must have to admit he was having a very bad day.
His sack was quite empty, it was flat on the ground,
nothing fully acceptable was anywhere to be found.
Something special was needed, a gift that he might,
give to us all, without angering the left or the right.
A gift that would satisfy - with no indecision,
each group of people in every religion.
Every race, every hue,
everyone, everywhere...even you!
So here is that gift, it's price beyond worth...
"MAY YOU AND YOUR LOVED ONES, ENJOY PEACE ON EAR
I wish the daily Posters, entire crew of Jehad watch, its Captain Robert and Hugh, a God Blessed Christmas and Hanukah. The core teaching of Jesus is:" LOVE your neighbour as yourself".... But if that neighbour ,in spite of my love towards him, tries to cheat me, grab my land,impose his authority over my family,and even try to decapitate my head?..... I have to asert myself ,and take a WHIP,as Jesus did in the Synagauge to drive away the intruding merchants and money changers.Love does not mean submisiveness.
Jihad Watch is a Whip. We dont hate people,but only their bad deeds.
By the way, that outfit you're wearing today is just smashing, and the heels set it off perfectly. But you might think about a different shade of lipstick.
Hmm. So Robert and Hugh are like Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon in "Some Like it Hot", but hiding from enraged Muslims rather than gangsters. And the question is, which is which? And which one gets Marilyn Monroe, and which one gets "the fuzzy end of the lollipop"? And does that mean what I think it does? If not, what? And if not, why do I think it means what it does? And have I been overdoing the festive spirits? (Yes.) Does it matter? (No.)
It will soon be Christmas here in England. Have a good one, everybody.
PS You forgot to mention Wham, Cliff Richard, Jona Lewie, Slade and Wizzard.
PPS "The Apartment" is better than "Some Like it Hot".
Yes, "The Apartment" is wonderful, not only becuase of Jack Lemmon (Andover and Harvard, an unusual combination in the early 1940s) and Shirley MacLaine (at her youngest, sweetest, most pre-crystal-therapy-ish), but also Fred MacMurray doing an excellent imitation of the late Peter Jennings as hard-hearted womanizer. But when one is comparing one wonderful Billy Wilder-I.A.L. Diamond film with another, also wonderful film, which is like comparing "The Singing Detective" with "Lipstick on Your Collar," aren't such comparisons odorous, as Mrs. Malaprop once said to Mrs. Calabash -- wherever you are.
Slade and Wizzard, YES!!!! :-)
It's Christmaaaaassssss!
And so to bed.
Rebecca
""evolved" is one way to describe our cultural changes from the 1940's to the present. Degenerated is another...?"
Yes, the modern West (with America as its vanguard) has in some ways degenerated and devolved; but that's part of growing up as a civilization as it wends its way into the uncertain future, a future known only to God, not to man -- not even to men who think they know what God knows.
Furthermore, the monumental changes which America, particularly, has undergone in the last 50-75 years -- staggering demographic changes, massive population increases and translocations, a World War, a Vietnam War, mind-boggling social upheavals, social & cultural experiments (some mistaken, some courageous), astounding technological and scientific advances -- it is truly miraculous and awe-inspiring that America has been able to hold its fabric together and be as prosperous, orderly, free and good as it is, notwithstanding the attendant degeneracy and devolution.
I'd rather be on an imperfectly good ship of state than one mesmerized by the fanatical zeal to be perfect according to a static model of yesteryear -- even if a black-and-white photo of the 1940s is obviously superior to 7th century Mohammed.
I thought of a new game we could all play: try to come up with a pop culture reference which Hugh doesn't know everything about. (Extra points for those who can spot his Google cheating.)
Great minds, great music!!! On my playlist:
- assorted Vince Guaraldi Christmas stuff
- Pat Martino
- Django
- Mingus (Ah Um)
- Horace Silver
And... Hugh's a dude? ;) I guess I'll cross "Hugh-Ann" off of my mental list of future children's names.
Maybe Sayyid Qutb was just really annoyed that no-one would dance with him.
He should have shaved off that funny little mo.
Wow, talk about the butterfly effect...a funny-looking Muslim with a Hitler moustache doesn't get to dance and the Muslim Brotherhood is born.
"an imperfectly good ship of state..."
from a posting above
Fluctuat nec mergitur.
But Rebecca was not talking about the S. S. Narrenschiff. She was talking not merely about the degradation of the democratic dogma, but about the whole shebang. And there she has a point. However, the West (and the other parts of the world that, geographically, may not be part of that West, but in forging an alliance of self-defense, and in educating its elites in Western ways, and in being open to the best of that West, may be considered part of it), also has powers of recuperation, if enough people come to their senses in time. Much will depend on numbers, and on the response to Islam. For if one decides there is something to defend, one may be further inclined to find out exactly what that something is, and in learning about it, be more respectful, grateful, and careful to preserve it. Anything is possible.
"But Rebecca was not talking about the S. S. Narrenschiff."
Neither was I, nor about the H.M.S. Narragansett; more along the lines of Longfellow's ship of state --
We know what Master laid thy keel,
What Workmen wrought thy ribs of steel,
Who made each mast, and sail, and rope,
What anvils rang, what hammers beat,
In what a forge and what a heat
Were shaped the anchors of thy hope!
The "Workmen" being not merely politicos nor elites, but all of us who make up the warp and woof of our collective shebang out upon the deep. Even if sometimes we act as superficially as a Kathie Lee Gifford holiday cruise, we are still sailing strong upon the deep.
Since many who have reached this point in the thread may have been put in a nautical mood, now may be the moment to recommend the poem about the boy who stood on the burning deck. Not the 19th century original, by Felicia Hemans, often used for recitation in schools when schools were schools, and schoolmarms were schoolmarms, but the modern poem (full of Brazilian steam heat) by Elizabeth Bishop, entitled "Casabianca."
The theme of the poem, to pick up where the allusion to schoolmarms above left off, is -- in the words of the song sung in "Pennies From Heaven" (the original, television version) by Cheryl Campbell, playing the part of a schoolmarm in the Forest of Dean, in Depression England, and who, while sitting on the desk, thinking of "Arthur" (as played by Bob Hoskins) sings to her class of eight and nine-year-olds (who are tooting and strumming and banging away on instruments), sings a song that sums up Bishop's "Casabianca" -- "Love Is Good for Everything That Ails You."
To round out the nautical metaphors: unfortunately, too many on board our ship of state -- officers and workmen alike -- continue to think that our enemy, Islam, is but a delusional figment, a Moby Dick.
Wilderness. There is no end to this. America.
Nothing to do with Sayyid Qutb. Nothing to do with Islam.
Now promenade.
Posted by: Hugh [TypeKey Profile Page] at December 24, 2005 11:51 AM\
to Hugh, and other posters, l just came back from a Christmass eve family gathering, and loved every minute of it! including eating tons of the best Polish cabasa made this side of the Detroit River!
I have come to appreciate what the "west" has to offer in culture, food, and freedoms! this is something to fight for, and enjoy while we have it!
and to make sure many more thousands of years to preserve it! Have a Merry Christmass to All!!!
Bor'ba za rodinu i za kielbasu.
My srazhalis' za kielbasu. I pobedili.
Well, it takes some getting used to. But it might work.
Hugh,
I enjoyed reading this posting very much. It is brilliant.
Thank you for wishing that we all have a good time for Christmas. I have now six Muslim guests at home so I am scurrying away with my wife and kids to a christian friend's house to celebrate a proper Christmas-day lunch.
Merry Christmas, and you too have a good time!
Rocky -- Marciano, Graziano, whatevah -- where do you live that you have "six Musilm guests" at home, but can also hasten away to have a Christmas lunch? Batavia? Don't answer if it makes things difficult.
(longtime lurker) ...let's not forget to remember not to forget Kit Carson, Slim Pickens, Muddy Waters, Robert Johnson, Wrong Way Corrigan, Sandy Koufax, Ava Gardner, Louise Brooks, Col. Tom Thumb, Roy Rogers, Jimmy Rodgers, Gregory Peck,
Jim Thorpe, Gentleman Jim Corbett, Jack London, Orson Welles, Screwball Comedy, Gershwin and Porter, Billie Holiday, Mr. Zimmerman, and listening to Marilyn Monroe sing "Santa Baby" while reading John Winthrop's "A Model of Christian Charity"(1630). Merry Christmas and thanks to Robert and Hugh for their work.
You know, around the same time dear Sayyid Qutb was sniffing out America, being offended by square dancing, the Armenian-American journalist John Roy Carlson [=Avedis Derounian] was covering the first Arab-Israeli war from the Egyptian side. His account, Cairo to Damascus, is full of colorful, piquant info about life in Qutb's Egypt in those days, besides a lot of significant info about that war and the Arabs' British allies, and the German and Bosnian Muslim mercenaries in the service of Haj Amin el-Husseini. The book is certainly worthwhile reading and it would be worthwhile to buy it used if you can find it. Many facts [and photos] in the book go totally against today's big lies about the first Arab-Israeli war [1947-49], the creation of the Arab refugees, which side Britain was on at the time, etc.
As Hugh points out, Qutb, who was invited to America to see the American way of life or to advance in the study of education [whatever], was offended by the freedom women had there, the sexual equality [esp. relative to Muslim teachings, etc], the American drive to enjoy life, and so on. As far as I know, Qutb has little, if anything, to say in the book he wrote about his tour of America about Israel. Correct me if I'm wrong. Yet, the pro-Arab apologists here, incl. someone at the Nation mag., referring to the authority of Yvonne Haddad, John Esposito's little helper at Georgetown, blame Qutb's animosity to America on support for Israel. Now the time when Qutb was in America was 1948-50 approx. Yet his book about American life has little or nothing to say about Israel or American support for Israel, although that period was one when there was very intense support for Israel on the part of certain segments of American public opinion. So his hostility to America was not originally motivated by any support for Israel. Indeed the State Dept at that time was hostile to Israel as it is today. It is true that Qutb later wrote against Israel and the Jews, but if Yvonne Haddad or anyone influenced by her attributes his anti-Americanism to anything having to with Israel, then she or they are being misleading.
Amnesty International, which has proven effective, spends millions on campaigns helping "political prisoners". Their primary focus since 9/11 has not been the treatment of apostates, liberal Muslims by Muslim states, but by legitimate counter-terror efforts. Has anyone wondered why Amnesty has never had a specific counter-Shariah campaign? Amnesty purports to support the UDHR, the ICCPR and the IESCR, yet not one dedicated campaign to counter the systematic brutality faced by the victims of Shariah and usul al fiqh.
1) Nick (FOB) Danger: What a good list. Want to add Preston Sturges, and the Collyer Brothers? But I am chagrinned to learn that Marilyn Monroe sang "Santa Baby." I thought Eartha Kitt was the original singer of "Santa Baby" before Madonna came along. Just the other day at a Christmas party I discussed with a learned theologian the relative merits of what he called the "Eartha Kitt" version of "Santa Baby" and the Madonna version. Now I find that we rigged the contest.
2)Eliyahu: before "From Cairo to Damascus" John Roy Carlson (whose brother was a Republican congressman from Long Island) wrote "Under Cover" which, in the middle of World War II, exposed the entire pro-Nazi movement of sympathizers, from Fritz Kuhn to William Pelley and the Silver Shirts, from George Sylvester Viereck (whose son Peter became a friend of Joseph Brodsky at Mt. Holyoke) to Boris Brasol (the kind of White Russian Nabokov had in mind in "Converation Piece, 1945").
That book went through 20-odd printings. It helped the war effort. And it helped silence once and for all a good many sinister people -- who were, of course, also rounded up by the F.B.I.
An updated "Under Cover" needs to be written. What Copt, what Maronite, what Arabic-speaking Jew, or apostate willing to risk his life, is right now doing the spade work for this future, most necessary book?
FOB (fresh off the boat? or are you calling me a watch pocket?) Actually, Hugh, you and your theologian were correct. The Marilyn version of "Santa Baby" which I was sent years ago and always assumed was legit is apparently a Marilyn copycat, a singer named Cynthia Basinet. How disappointing, Marilyn certainly should have sang it-- I blame Arthur Miller. So, I guess the crown remains with Eartha. The Collyer Brothers? Alright, in that case I throw in Charles Fort...Yes, Preston Sturges esp with Joel McCrea in Sullivan's Travels (I did include Screwball Comedy as all inclusive, from His Girl Friday to The Awful Truth to Sturges)..as Joel McCrea says in "Ride the High Country": 'I just want to enter my house justified.'
Forward Operating Base.
I thought you might be sharing Home Thoughts From Abroad, in the vicinity of Tikrit.
Hugh,
Some place in Asia, in a non-Arab country. Always surrounded by Muslims.
But I had a good Christmas lunch with my family at a friend's house.
Later we went to visit other friends, drank punch, sang Christmas carols.
Had a good time.
Your site is useful as a valve to let out steam.
Thanks so much
Hugh et all,
You mean all is not lost and we're not doomed afterall? Really? This Christmas spirit is giddy stuff.
From Honor Your Partner by Ed Durlacher:
Lady of the Lake p. 141
1. BALANCE THE ONE BELOW
What these Americans Doing?
Man and woman touching!
2. SWING THE ONE BELOW
I see an ankle, I even see knee.
Getting very excited here, very upset.
3. BALANCE YOUR OWN IN THE CENTER
Decadent Americans!
4. SWING YOUR PARTNER
I can't stand it any more! Too much!
Must get back to my harem.
5. DOWN THE CENTER
Curse America!
6. AND BACK
Destroy America!
7. CAST OFF, LADIES CHAIN
Women touch each other, men touch women!
8. CHAIN AND BACK
Death to all Americans!
Allahu Akbar!