There has been a notable double standard in the mainstream media’s coverage of stories of brutality and possible war crimes committed by the forces of Libya’s National Transitional Council. As videos circulated of a bloodied Gaddafi being beaten about the head with a shoe, and then of his corpse, the trope went something like this:
“Some viewers may find these images coming out of Libya disturbing. But others say the Libyan people have suffered so long that it’s only understandable that they want to vent their rage.”
Swap out “Libya” for some other country, and “the Libyan people” for some other party, and the double standard becomes evident. Or, compare the coverage of the Navy SEALs’ raid against bin Laden, or even the coverage of Saddam Hussein’s execution, and there is an acceptance (and even approval) of bloodlust in Gaddafi’s demise not seen elsewhere.
Dictator or no dictator, the video (find it on YouTube, if you can stomach it) of Gaddafi being sodomized with a weapon is horrifying, recalling Peter Hitchens’ misgivings once again: “It looks to me pretty much like a football crowd armed with AK-47s and bazookas, with the added ingredient of Islamic militancy. Why am I expected to like it?”
And then there’s the sodomy. Bill Maher, to his credit, does not take an “anything but Islam” approach to his religious satire, and considers the proverbial elephant in the room below. A quiet subculture of homosexuality is a social phenomenon widely acknowledged within Islamic countries, inextricably tied to the strict segregation of men and women, with an undercurrent of pious misogyny.
“Maher: Gadhafi sodomy video suggests homosexuality has become sexuality in Islamic culture,” by Jeff Poor for The Daily Caller, October 29:
HBO host Bill Maher has been no friend of religion over the years. But unlike many of the secular left in America, his attacks haven’t been just on Christianity, but he’s been critical of Islam as well.
And on the Friday night broadcast of his “Real Time” program, Maher drew another conclusion about the Muslim culture, using a video that has been circulating of former Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi ultimate demise.
“Alright, let me ask you this because I alluded to it during the monologue and I”m not going to show the footage,” he said. “We could but we”re talking about the fact that as soon as they caught Gadhafi they stuck something up his ass.”
Based on that and how that particular culture strictly interprets Shariah law in the treatment of women, Maher concluded that homosexuality has become sexuality.
“Now Groucho Marx said sometimes a cigar is just a cigar,” Maher continued. “And sometimes a stick up your ass is just a stick up your ass. But don’t these people have issues? I mean, when the first thing you do is stick something up the guy”s ass, I feel like it says something about you as a culture — the men in that culture. When you segregate the women and you cover them up and homosexuality becomes sexuality.”