Paul Harvey
This morning I posted at Jihad Watch a New York Times article in which a mujahid quotes this part of Sura 9:5 of the Qur’an: “Slay the unbelievers wherever you find them.” He was using this verse to explain why he was in Iraq fighting Americans. I also posted a story about a Hamas plot in Canada that sounds as if it was inspired by this verse: the Hamas operative “wanted to kill a Jew wherever he meets him, like in the street if he would see an Orthodox Jew, he had orders to kill him on the spot.” Sura 9:5 is known in Islamic theology as the “Verse of the Sword.” Osama bin Laden praises Allah for it.
With this sort of thing going on in the world, it’s understandable that the great radio commentator Paul Harvey would get the idea that Islam is “a religion which encourages killing.” But the Council on American Islamic Relations saw his remarks as another opportunity to practice its trademark intimidation through canny manipulation of PC shibboleths. Says WorldNetDaily: “A Muslim lobby group increasingly known for its demand of apologies from public figures, is calling on legendary radio commentator Paul Harvey to say he is sorry for asserting Islam encourages killing.”
Says CAIR’s Ibrahim Hooper: “We had hoped that a respected broadcast professional like Mr. Harvey would not join the growing number of Islamophobic hate-mongers in our society.” This is a familiar Hooper tactic: smear anyone as a hatemonger who dares to speak about the radical Islam he, as a “moderate” Muslim, is supposed to abhor. He has called me similar names on MSNBC, although he has never taken the trouble to answer any of the many troubling questions about CAIR. CAIR is even suing a Congressman for claiming that CAIR is “the fund-raising arm for Hezbollah” (thanks to nicolei, agent azure, and all the others who sent me this link). CAIR may not be fundraising for Hezbollah, but there are plenty of other questions about the organization that I hope will be answered if this case goes to trial “” although I expect they are counting on the Congressman to fold under the pressure and issue an abject dhimmi apology, making a trial unnecessary.
Hooper says that Harvey “falsely attributes to Islam two things that are specifically prohibited by our faith, murder and cruelty to animals.” Harvey, according to WND, “described the bloody nature of cockfight gambling in Iraq” and said: “Add to the thirst for blood a religion which encourages killing, and it is entirely understandable if Americans came to this bloody party unprepared.”
Leaving aside the part about cruelty to animals, I am sure that Hooper is familiar with the Verse of the Sword. Instead of trying to intimidate Harvey, he would make better use of his time by trying to craft a peaceful understanding of this verse and others like it in the Qur’an that radical Muslims are using around the world today to “encourage killing.” And by lifting a finger to root out terrorist activity from America’s mosques. It is the radical Muslims who are doing the killing, and Hooper with his threats, bluster, and disingenuousness, who should apologize “” not Paul Harvey.
And that, my friends, is the rest of the story.