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Exposing the role that Islamic jihad theology and ideology play in the modern global conflicts

Reza Aslan comes out strong for Hamas

Aug 5, 2014 2:12 pm By Robert Spencer

As I have noted before, nowadays if you parrot the accepted establishment opinions, you can rise far and fast, and be hailed as a “respected scholar” — and those accepted establishment opinions are frankly insidious. If you oppose America’s defense against the global jihad, claim that Muhammad was peaceful and Jesus was violent, and profess to debunk orthodox Christianity, and above all, hate Israel and love those who wish to destroy both the U.S. and Israel, you can become the next media star. In fact, the mainstream media is generally featuring only critics of Israel to discuss the issue — not any defenders of Israel at all.

And so we come again to media darling Reza Aslan, who is adored by the Leftist media establishment not in spite of, but because of, the fact that he is a Board member of a lobbying group for the bloodthirsty and genocidally antisemitic Iranian regime; tried to pass off Iran’s genocidally-minded former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as a liberal reformer; called on the U.S. Government to negotiate with Ahmadinejad himself, as well as with the jihad terror group Hamas; praised the jihad terror group Hizballah as “the most dynamic political and social organization in Lebanon”; praised also the anti-Semitic, misogynist, Islamic supremacist Muslim Brotherhood, which is dedicated in its own words, according to a captured internal document, to “eliminating and destroying Western civilization from within”; and has also applauded and called for the forcible shutdown of the free speech of those who hates — a quintessentially thuggish and fascist impulse.

Now Aslan has on several shows come out strongly for Hamas. He denies that he is doing so, of course, but in practically the same breath energetically parrots Hamas propaganda about Israel targeting civilians, even claiming, risibly, that there is no evidence that Hamas is using human shields. When he says such things, he can trust that the mainstream media has not reported obvious examples of Hamas’s lies and disinformation, much less the fact that Hamas openly avows that it uses human shields so as to provoke civilian casualties that can be used to demonize Israel. Here is an account of his exchange with Bill Maher — even Maher found Aslan’s cheerleading for Hamas tough to swallow:

The conversation ignited when Aslan claimed jihadist forces in the Middle East “address a lot of grievances that aren’t being addressed by governments.”

“They’re crucifying people on the side of the road,” Maher objected. “Where are the protests about that? I know that Israel’s horrible, but where are the protests about crucifying people? Boko Haram has killed more people than Israel this year, with the war going on.”

“But not with American weapons, and I think that is why you’re seeing a lot more emphasis in the United States,” Aslan said.

“You’re going to defend Hamas?” fellow panel member Andrew Ross Sorkin asked.

“I’m not defending Hamas,” Aslan replied. “All I am saying is that if you are going to have a situation where 1,600 people, 85 percent of them civilians, hundreds of children are being killed every day …”

“That’s because [Hamas forces] are putting [civilians] in front of them!” Ross Sorkin interrupted.

“That is nonsense!” Aslan fired back.

A few moments later, Aslan elaborated: “Amnesty International, which is on the ground right there, did a month-long review of this. They have found no evidence whatsoever of any kind of human shield being used.”

The denial was more than Maher could take.

“It’s a war,” Maher interrupted. “It’s a war that Hamas started, and somehow when Israel reacts to this they have to do everything that doesn’t kill any civilians. People die in wars. Now, I’ve said this before on this show, if the situation was reversed, Hamas would kill every single person in Israel. The reason why that is not happening is because they can’t. Because they can’t doesn’t make them good, it makes them weak.”

Aslan ought to know better, but he may not, as he has never shown himself to be very bright. Although he is quite arrogant and supercilious, this foul-mouthed media darling keeps revealing his abysmal ignorance in interview after interview. He continually makes howling errors of fact, including his recent ridiculous claim that the idea of resurrection “simply doesn’t exist in Judaism,” despite numerous passages to the contrary in the Hebrew Scriptures. He has also referred to “the reincarnation, which Christianity talks about” — although he later claimed that one was a “typo.” In yet another howler he later insisted was a “typo,” he claimed that the Biblical story of Noah was barely four verses long — which he then corrected to forty, but that was wrong again, as it is 89 verses long. Interviewed at the BBC about Obama’s meeting with Pope Francis, Aslan claimed that the “founding philosophy of the Jesuits” was “the preferential option for the poor.” But in reality, the Jesuits were founded in 1534, and according to the California Catholic Conference, “the popular term ‘preferential option for the poor’ is relatively new. Its first use in a Church document is in 1968 from a meeting of the Conference of Latin American Bishops held in Medellin, Columbia.” So Aslan was only 434 years off — recalling when he called Turkey the second most populous Muslim country, which was only about 100 million people off. And he recently invoked Pope Pius XI as an example of how “historically, Fascist ideology did infect corners of the Catholic world.” He is apparently confusing Pius XI, who issued the anti-fascist encyclical Mit Brennender Sorge (which excoriates the “so-called myth of race and blood”) with Pius XII, who has been widely accused of being fascist sympathies (although he actually wrote Mit Brennender Sorge).

It does not, however, take intellect to be a media star these days — all you have to do is hate America and Israel. Aslan has revealed his subpar intelligence numerous times. He writes “than” for “then”; apparently thinks the Latin word “et” is an abbreviation; and writes “clown’s” for “clowns.” Aslan is less a “religious scholar” than he is a marginally literate, unevenly educated charlatan with a talent for telling the mainstream media what it wants to hear. His big secret is that he is really not all that bright, and is in way over his head, asked to comment all the time on matters that are way beyond his competence — and he knows it, which is why he lashes out with ferocious venom and arrogance against anyone who dares to challenge him.

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Filed Under: journalistic bias, Leftist/Islamic Alliance, Useful idiots Tagged With: featured


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Comments

  1. CogitoErgoSum says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 2:22 pm

    “Some men just want to watch the world burn.”

    • Huck Folder says

      Aug 6, 2014 at 12:54 am

      Hamaslan?

    • Jay Boo says

      Aug 6, 2014 at 9:06 am

      If Jesus were to come today, Reza would try to inform Jesus what to do next.

  2. Uri says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 2:23 pm

    Who’s that flyin’ up there
    Is it a bird? No
    Is it a plane? No
    Is it the spinner? Yeah

    Yeah, spin again like we did last summer
    Come on, let’s spin again like we spun last war
    Do you remember when things were really hummin’?
    Come on, let’s spin again, spinnin’ time is here

    a round and round and up and down we go again

  3. jihad3tracker says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 2:25 pm

    HELLO REZA ! ! ! ! And please calm down, clown.

    Then just admit what I and readers here already know : you obsessively check in at JW several times a day, reading every post.

    BTW, how is life with your high-maintenance wife proceeding ?

    Someday, would you confide with us what variety of domestic “bliss” awaits you upon arriving home from the Distinguished Creative Writing Endowed Chair at Bullwinkle’s alma mater — Wassamatta U / California campus ?

    We already know that one version might involve a dog collar & kennel fencing — which, frankly, sounds quite original. Do a video ! Maybe it will go viral…

    • Will Doohan says

      Aug 5, 2014 at 4:32 pm

      Hahahahaha!. Wassamatta U.
      Haven’t heard that in a while. Thanks for the laugh.

  4. John C. Barile says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 2:30 pm

    You may not be lauded and adulated in HuffPo or Salon, Robert, but you will rise to heights someday soon that will turn Reza green with envy, Robert. You are the champion of free people everywhere.

    • John C. Barile says

      Aug 5, 2014 at 2:38 pm

      Excuse my gushing admiration. Lesser men indebted to greater men do that, you know.

      • Champ ✿ says

        Aug 5, 2014 at 2:44 pm

        John, I agree with you about Robert! …gush away, and great comment 🙂

      • gravenimage says

        Aug 5, 2014 at 10:21 pm

        To all those praising Robert Spencer, I’d like to add my hearty “Hear, Hear!”.

    • jihad3tracker says

      Aug 5, 2014 at 2:47 pm

      On a serious note —

      I emailed Mr. Spencer over a year ago, telling him that he almost certainly has no idea of the depth to which he is treasured by people all over the United States and around the world.

      For all those here who have never seen one of the greatest films ever made about a rise of tyranny like the one we face currently ( then it was Nazi-variety pathology ), please take a couple of hours this weekend to watch “Casablanca”.

      And don’t be surprised if you find tears in your eyes at several moments … That happens to me every time.

    • Daniel Triplett says

      Aug 5, 2014 at 4:15 pm

      Agreed. Robert Spencer is a five-star General of the Counterjihad.

      • Henry says

        Aug 6, 2014 at 2:19 pm

        Fortunate are we Robert, to have a most brilliant scholar dedicated, honorable, noble, courageous, trustworthy , unaffected, and ingenuous…..a thoroughly decent man as our guiding light.

        The free world ( and those yet to be set free) owe you an immeasurable debt.

        With deepest sincerity, and heartfelt gratitude, thank you!

  5. mariam rove says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 2:34 pm

    Reza is the biggest vermin out there. M

  6. Walter Sieruk says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 2:34 pm

    Well,Reaz Aslan is now showing his true colors. Know one should really be surprised at this.

    • boakai ngombu says

      Aug 5, 2014 at 2:37 pm

      ya, but that scooter shirt is really nice

  7. Champ says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 2:34 pm

    “reza aslan” certainly is a liar, a coward, and a lost cause serving an evil cause: islam …

    “But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars–their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.” — Revelation 21:8

    • Champ says

      Aug 5, 2014 at 2:41 pm

      …wow and he can’t dance or dress himself either.

      • Angemon says

        Aug 5, 2014 at 4:12 pm

        Nope, he can’t.

        • Champ says

          Aug 5, 2014 at 4:23 pm

          …oh dear he’s much worse than I imagined and now my eyes are burning.

        • thomas_h says

          Aug 5, 2014 at 5:21 pm

          Reza Aslan never really quit fantasizing about the career of Afghani “Dancing Boy”.
          A pathetic dunce.

  8. Islam_Macht_Frei says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 2:36 pm

    I LOVE Bill Maher. He really skewers Islam, no Hollywood PC BS from him.

  9. BJ Drwenski says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 2:41 pm

    I now and always will side with Israel! Israel has every right to defend herself!

  10. Tradewinds says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 2:48 pm

    Aslan is a creep. Why isn’t he living in Yemen? The hypocrite doesn’t want to live in an Islamic country! P.S. Keith Ellison, too.

  11. Champ says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 2:49 pm

    Reza Aslan comes out strong for Hamas

    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

    You love Hamas so much then go to Gaza, whydontcha …

    Join forces with Hamas and put your $$ where your Big mouth is for a change! ..I triple dare you, coward!

    • Champ says

      Aug 5, 2014 at 2:51 pm

      …picture him p’in his pants at the thought of actually going to Gaza, lol!!! 😀

  12. Anushirvan says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 3:08 pm

    Something related about Aslan:

    His book Zealot has been published in Dutch translation in March of this year by Dutch publisher Balans. I’ve seen it appear in just about every bookstore in my neck of the woods since then.

    http://www.uitgeverijbalans.nl/web/Zoekresultaat.htm#/?searchtype=titel&keywords=aslan

  13. Jaladhi says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 3:54 pm

    If you support terrorists, you are a terrorist!!

  14. alyn21 says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 5:57 pm

    160,000 people killed in Syria. No demonstrations, no open letters talking about a humanitarian crisis, no demands for a ceasefire. So progressives of the world, How come??? Could it be because there is no opportunity to blame Israel for this crisis?
    The sad part of all this is that is proves that all these bleeding hearts demanding that Israel play nice with their muslim enemy really do not care for the muslim people at all.
    Thousands of muslims can die without comment by you idiots just so long as they are killed by their fellow muslims.

  15. Alarmed Pig Farmer says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 6:15 pm

    I thought the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini said there was no fun in Islam. Looks like Reza is rockin’ on in the photo. May joy is breaking out cuz they sense they’re winning, on the cusp of something big.

  16. Kepha says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 6:27 pm

    Well, my guess is that Reza Aslan will root for Hamas down to the very day its fighters are pulled out of Gaza to beef up IS in a struggle against the Iranian Revolutionary Guard (commanded by Gen. Hossein Bologna).

    A bit off topic, but still Hanas-related—

    In the most indigo part of my sadly deep indigo state in the USA, my wife and I were out shopping this morning. At the next checkout counter, the cashier was in a hijab, and clearly not of Middle Eastern or north African heritage (female convert, probably). A 20-something customer was taking her to task for wearing a Hamas bracelet, arguing that the Hamas charter calls for genocide against the Jews, and whatever she was told, such groups aren’t decent at all.

    I gave the guy a sly wink and put my thumb up.

    Perhaps there are at least a few of the younger crowd who “get it” about the jihad.

    • dumbledoresarmy says

      Aug 5, 2014 at 11:05 pm

      That is very, very heartening news indeed.

  17. Ashley says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 6:32 pm

    That is some photo…

    Is he dancing? Exercising? Constipated?

  18. Guy Macher says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 7:18 pm

    Reza, I see the sex reassignment drugs are kicking in! Soon you’ll be a man!

  19. jewdog says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 7:32 pm

    Jimmy Carter and Mary Robinson, the former president of Ireland, have written an op-ed in ForeignPolicy.com in favor of recognizing Hamas and slamming Israel. No surprise there – Carter should move to Gaza.

  20. happyboy says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 7:54 pm

    Well, despite all the venom Mr Aslan and Mr Spencer direct at each other at least Mr Aslan has some real scholarly credentials, which Mr Spencer hasn’t. I think Mr Aslan is a bad scholar, but he still has scholarly credentials. And when it comes to writing bad books Mr Aslan and Mr Spencer are just about even. Aslan’s book about Jesus is no better and no worse than Mr Spencer’s book on the historical Muhammad.

    • Ashley says

      Aug 5, 2014 at 8:23 pm

      Happyboy…Reza will make you very happy!

      He looks like he’s about to fist-fuck a cat…

      Enjoy!

      • MacUalraig says

        Aug 6, 2014 at 12:43 am

        Lol… I just spit my coffee out.

        Nice one.

    • Champ says

      Aug 5, 2014 at 9:06 pm

      hey windbag!! ..don’t you have a hot-air balloon to inflate, soa?

    • zimriel says

      Aug 6, 2014 at 12:38 am

      Assuming what you say is true, that the relative scholarly credentials of Aslan and Spencer are in Aslan’s favour… you’ve just told us that Aslan’s credentials STILL failed to help Aslan write a superior book despite Aslan’s head-start.

      I do hope you don’t play soccer.

      • happyboy says

        Aug 6, 2014 at 4:58 pm

        Nope, I don’t play soccer but I love seeing the World Cup and the spanish La Liga. But I am quite good at spotting when somebody claims to be a historian and doesn’t know his trade. Technically Aslan is a scholar, but a bad one. Spencer is neither a scholar nor a historian and his book “Did Muhammad exist” give ample proof that he isn’t even a good amateur historian.

    • WVinMN says

      Aug 6, 2014 at 1:52 am

      Folks, this idiot is the summary product of our modern American education system. Knowledge acquired through experience, personal scholarship (i.e. being well versed in classic literature, civics, history), travel, etc. means nothing to these morons. Credentials trumps all, and it doesn’t matter a wit what degree is attached to them (and most of these people aren’t majoring in STEM fields). Think about this for a moment. The US citizenry is more “credentialed” now than at any other time in our history. A bachelor degree is the new high school diploma. You can earn a MBA without leaving home, and Ph.D.’s are deemed a requirement for teaching at many community colleges. Do credentials equate to better business skills, laboratory technicians, high school educators? Are we a smarter people today than 30 years ago? 100? 200? Do we honestly believe that your average, modern credentialed American is smarter or more wise than our constitutional scholars, half of which never graduated from college? Of course not! Which brings us to the subject at hand. Read Spencer’s books, watch him debate on TV, peruse his columns published here and elsewhere. Then pick up a book by Aslan, or for the masochists out there, follow him on Twitter. All the credentials in the world couldn’t elevate Aslan’s “scholarship” to a level approaching Roberts. And yet, the vast majority of our modern higher education system is populated by similar twits, but twits with many letters following their surname. Funny thing is, despite their plethora of degrees and awards, very few of these “scholars” are willing to debate Robert. And when they do, they usually make an ass of themselves in short order. My guess is that the happy freak above has never picked up a book by Robert, nor watched him debate on TV or on talk radio. For that matter, I doubt he has read much of anything substantial in his lifetime. But I would bet a paycheck that he is credentialed, and likely more so than Robert Spencer.

    • gravenimage says

      Aug 6, 2014 at 2:20 am

      The absurdly self-styled “happyboy” wrote:

      Well, despite all the venom Mr Aslan and Mr Spencer direct at each other…
      ……………………………..

      What witless moral equivalence. Reza Aslan is a apologist for evil—hideous regimes like the Islamic Republic of Iran and Hamas—while Robert Spencer warns against the threat we face from Jihad and Shari’ah.

      This is like saying that Churchill and Goebbels ‘directed venom at each other’.

      More:

      …at least Mr Aslan has some real scholarly credentials, which Mr Spencer hasn’t. I think Mr Aslan is a bad scholar, but he still has scholarly credentials…
      ……………………………..

      What utter rot:

      “Reza Aslan misrepresents his status as “scholar of religions,” downplays his ties to front group for bloody Iranian Islamic regime”

      http://www.jihadwatch.org/2013/08/reza-aslan-misrepresents-his-status-as-scholar-of-religions-downplays-his-ties-to-front-group-for-bl

      And if you don’t want to see his bs parsed by Jihad Watch, then you can see him skewered in Forbes:

      “How Reza Aslan Became A Media Messiah”

      http://www.forbes.com/sites/robasghar/2013/07/31/how-reza-aslan-became-a-media-messiah/?&_suid=140730431568906654422841966152

      Raza Aslam has an MA in Theological Studies, while Robert Spencer has an MA in Religious Studies, —these are essentially the *same* academic credentials.

      More:

      And when it comes to writing bad books Mr Aslan and Mr Spencer are just about even. Aslan’s book about Jesus is no better and no worse than Mr Spencer’s book on the historical Muhammad.
      ……………………………..

      What meretricious idiocy.

      Reza Aslan presents and entirely ahistorical Jesus—essentially, he presents him as a Palestinian Jihadist.

      Whereas Robert Spencer presents the “Prophet” as he is seen in original Islamic texts.

      Note that “happyboy” does not say how these are “equally bad”…

      • happyboy says

        Aug 6, 2014 at 5:30 pm

        My claim that Mr Aslan and Mr Spencer are spewing venom at each other was not meant to say anything about their moral equivalency. It was a simple observation. And I don´t see how comparing the Aslan/Spencer vendetta with Churchill/Goebbels is in any way a good analogy. As far as I know Churchill never accused Goebbels of being a bad scholar or having a “small brain”. Mr Spencer does it all the time as soon as the name Reza Aslan comes up. It seems that he has developed an almost pathological obsession about Aslan.
        And when arguments fail just throw out nonsense like “what utter rot”. I think you are well aware that Mr Spencer isn’t a real scholar which I why you fall back on nonsense. Mr Spencer has an M.A. in early Christian studies which is not enough to qualify anybody as a scholar. Mr Aslan has a Ph.D in sociology of religion which technically would make him a scholar in that field. So when it comes to credentials Mr Aslan clearly wins.
        And “gravenimage” is certainly right that Mr Aslan presents an “ahistorical” Jesus. But whereas Mr Aslan at least gets a few things right about the historical Jesus Mr Spencer doesn’t get anything whatsover right about the historical Muhammad since he is arguing that Muhammad with great probability never existed. No need to make any qualified guesses about Muhammad’s biography or message since we have simply let him disappear into thin air. So on that count too Mr Aslan wins over Mr Spencer. At least he doesn’t let Jesus disappear into thin air too.

        • Angemon says

          Aug 6, 2014 at 6:20 pm

          happyboy posted:

          “But whereas Mr Aslan at least gets a few things right about the historical Jesus Mr Spencer doesn’t get anything whatsover right about the historical Muhammad since he is arguing that Muhammad with great probability never existed.”

          What? So Spencer’s conclusion is wrong because he looks at the earliest sources of information reagarding muhammad and concludes that muhammad might have not existed at all? Do you have some sort of evidence to why Mr. Spencer is wrong that you would like to share with the rest of us? Historically speaking, Spencer’s view is not implausible.

          “No need to make any qualified guesses about Muhammad’s biography or message since we have simply let him disappear into thin air.”

          Oh, ok, you haven’t read Spencer’s book. That explains it.

        • gravenimage says

          Aug 6, 2014 at 9:13 pm

          “happyboy” wrote:

          And “gravenimage” is certainly right that Mr Aslan presents an “ahistorical” Jesus. But whereas Mr Aslan at least gets a few things right about the historical Jesus Mr Spencer doesn’t get anything whatsover right about the historical Muhammad since he is arguing that Muhammad with great probability never existed…
          ……………………………………..

          This in and of itself shows that “happyboy” understands *nothing* about history and its study.

          Asking if a figure or an incident is factual is a perfectly reasonable question for historians to pursue. One can—and scholars have—asked whether there is independent historical evidence for the existence of Abraham, of Moses, of Jesus, of Gautama Buddha, of Prester John, and of any other religious or cultural figure.

          No such study had been done on Muhammed—in part because scholars were well aware that this would be a “politically incorrect” and hazardous line of inquiry.

          More:

          No need to make any qualified guesses about Muhammad’s biography or message since we have simply let him disappear into thin air. So on that count too Mr Aslan wins over Mr Spencer…
          ……………………………………..

          Clearly, “happyboy” is not a cogent enough thinker to realize that these are two separate issues.

          There is the question of whether a figure existed historically—and if so, how close the facts are to those of the legendary figure.

          Then there is the question of the legend itself, and what influence *it* may have had.

          For instance, the figure of Prester John likely never existed at all—yet ideas about him were quite influential in Medieval Europe and its view of the East.

          Then there is the figure of Saint Wenceslas—demonstrably a real, historical figure—and yet, this minor Bohemian duke is *very different* historically from the supremely compassionate, charitable figure familiar to those whose only knowledge of him is from the legend in the popular Christmas Carol “Good King Wenceslas”.

          So—what of “happyboy’s” claim that Robert Spencer has never dealt with the figure of the “Prophet” as presented in Islamic texts, and used as a model by over a billion Muslims today?

          Not only has Robert Spencer dealt with this crucial issue hundreds of times—here at Jihad Watch, in speeches, in articles, and in television appearances, but he has *written an entire book on the subject*, which “happyboy” appears to have missed:

          “The Truth About Muhammad: Founder of the World’s Most Intolerant Religion”

          Regnery Publishing, 2007

          http://www.amazon.com/The-Truth-About-Muhammad-Intolerant/dp/1596985283

          Is this Muhammed “disappearing into thin air”? Good grief…

          In fact, Robert Spencer regularly makes the point that much of the savagery of Islam is *exactly* on the basis of pious Muslims emulating what they consider Islam’s “perfect man”.

          This model and its nature is, of course, *absolutely crucial* to the threat we face from Islam—and this is true whether Muhammed was a fully historic figure, a composite of several Dark Ages warlords, or invented out of whole cloth decades after he was supposed to have lived.

          More:

          At least he [Reza Aslan] doesn’t let Jesus disappear into thin air too…
          ……………………………………..

          Reza Aslan presents “Jesus” as a vicious “Palestinian” terrorist—tell us how this is “better” than claiming that he never existed at all?

          It seems to me that taking a peaceful and compassionate figure and ahistorically claiming that he was a vicious fanatic in real life is *infinitely worse*—both morally and in terms of serious scholarship—than asserting that the Gospels are just a beautiful but fanciful tale.

  21. livingengine says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 9:18 pm

    “Aslan countered by insisting Israel, as a democracy, has to be held to a higher standard than Hamas.”
    Read more at http://www.wnd.com/2014/08/media-personality-defends-israel-in-gaza/#lzvsHghvL3Fx5WKp.99

    Reza Aslan needs to be held to higher standard.

  22. gravenimage says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 10:34 pm

    Reza Aslan comes out strong for Hamas
    ……………………….

    Yes, I saw Bill Maher’s last show, and Reza Aslan’s ludicrous claim that he was not defending Hamas.

    To his credit, Bill Maher took him to task.

    Maher is *not* perfect, and periodically seems to ‘backslide’ and actually regain some ignorance about Islam, a disturbing phenomenon.

    But by the grim standards of today’s MSM—*especially* by the standards of Liberals—Maher is refreshingly plainspoken about the savagery of Jihad.

    I’m sure there are people who not only would never read Jihad Watch or see Sun TV or watch a Pat Condell video—or even watch Fox News, for that matter—who nonetheless are learning at least a little bit about the Jihad threat from Bill Maher—and for that I salute him.

  23. PJG says

    Aug 5, 2014 at 11:19 pm

    Bill Maher: “I know that Israel’s horrible, but…”
    What? Was that really necessary, Bill?

    • gravenimage says

      Aug 6, 2014 at 2:24 am

      You had to be there, PJG—I was watching the show, and Maher was being sarcastic.

      • PJG says

        Aug 6, 2014 at 6:05 am

        Aha…thanks, GI.

  24. Beagle says

    Aug 6, 2014 at 12:12 am

    Many years ago I warned Jihad Watchers about Aslan’s, I figured, upcoming meteoric rise within the MSM and literary community. It’s probably out there on the Intarwebz somewhere, namely the archives here. I thought he would rise to the top of the heap of the dissimulators on Islam. And now he’s there.

  25. zimriel says

    Aug 6, 2014 at 12:33 am

    If Reza the Ithna-Ashari had clue one about the Muslim Brotherhood, he’d loudly disavow them and he’d dodge the question where Hamas came up.

    I’m sure he’s already received at least one telegram from the Iranians on the topic… but he might not be able to help himself.

  26. Cyrus says

    Aug 6, 2014 at 1:28 am

    How many times CNN interviews this goon! Apparently Reza Aslan is now hired as the spokesperson of Hamas! It’s amazing how much the opportunists can evolved! His Iranian father left Islam and his mother converted to Christianity, Reza was an atheist like his father, then converted to Christianity during his high school years, suddenly he realized that the Islamists have no one who can speak like a human being to represent them, converted to Islam to take advantage of the opportunities! Ever since he’s been promoting the Muslim Brotherhood and Iran’s Islamist regime’s agendas! He works for the Muslim Brotherhood front CAIR and collaborates with Iran regime’s lobby fronts in the west!

  27. pong says

    Aug 6, 2014 at 6:09 am

    I am surprised that nobody comment on Aslan’s book being plagiarism of “Trial of Jesus” by retired suprim court Jastice Cohn. In his book he discusses that side of Jesus as one of possible one. Aslan is a plagiarist without shame.

  28. vlparker says

    Aug 6, 2014 at 9:38 am

    Is Reza dancing? Don’t you get thrown in jail in Iran for dancing. Maybe they might amputate a leg so you can’t dance anymore. Doesn’t Reza know that there is no fun in islam? Doesn’t that make him an apostate of islam? He better not let the mullahs find him.

  29. Faye says

    Aug 6, 2014 at 12:36 pm

    He is so weak and what is he doing the rumba.

  30. mike ryan says

    Aug 6, 2014 at 1:59 pm

    The posted picture of Aslan would be completed perfectly were he holding cheerleader pompoms and applying blush and some lip stick. So peeerty!

  31. happyboy says

    Aug 6, 2014 at 7:50 pm

    Angemon wrote:
    What? So Spencer’s conclusion is wrong because he looks at the earliest sources of information reagarding muhammad and concludes that muhammad might have not existed at all? Do you have some sort of evidence to why Mr. Spencer is wrong that you would like to share with the rest of us? Historically speaking, Spencer’s view is not implausible.

    Well, to dilettantes in history Mr Spencer’s view might not seem implausible. But to the rest of us, including almost all islamologists and historians who specialize in antiquity Spencer’s hypothesis is utterly implausible. How many can you name? I guess it will be hard to come up to even the number of the fingers on your hand.
    I have actually debated with Mr Spencer himself. I know his arguments and I know that they are based on thin air. I also know that he is himself is relying on theories from people like Christoph Luxenberg who in the best of cases can be described as amateurs (Patricia Crone’s assessment of the man). I prefer to call Luxenberg an idiot and a fraud. Luckily you don’t have to know either classical arabic nor syriac to realize that Luxenberg is an idiot. For anybody interested in seeing how real scholars effectively demasks a fraud like Luxenberg I refer to the massive book “The Quran in context” published in 2010 by Brill. There you will find lots of essays by a lot of different scholars that have a direct bearing on Mr Spencer’s guesswork. One essay I particularly liked is “Lost in philology – The virgins of paradise and the Luxenberg hypothesis” by Stefan Wild. The piece is dead serious and funny at the same time. I have sent the book to Mr Spencer. Hopefully he will learn something from real scholars.

    I wrote:
    “No need to make any qualified guesses about Muhammad’s biography or message since we have simply let him disappear into thin air.”

    Angemon replied:
    “Oh, ok, you haven’t read Spencer’s book. That explains it.”

    I’ve read the book. Trust me. I guess the few lines Mr Spencer offer on page 196 that “there may have been a a mysterious prophet whose words and deeds somewhat resemble those of the prophet of Islam and differ sharply from them in important ways” is as far as Mr Spencer is prepared to go in specifying the charcteristics of a man lost in the mists of history.

    • Robert Spencer says

      Aug 6, 2014 at 8:04 pm

      FYI — I have no idea who “happyboy” is, but unless he is David Wood, Anjem Choudary, Omar Bakri, Adnan Rashid, or Bashir Abdul Haqq, I have not debated him on the question of whether or not Muhammad existed. I doubt that he is any of those people; if he were, why would he comment here anonymously? Whoever he is, we may have had some exchange on Twitter; some people consider Twitter exchanges to be debates; I do not. And while I have a copy of the book to which he refers, “The Qur’an in Context,” neither he nor anyone else sent it to me. I bought it myself. It does not (unsurprisingly) contain any slam-dunk refutation of my thesis in “Did Muhammad Exist?,” contrary to his claims. In sum, whoever this person is, one thing is certain: he’s a liar.

    • Champ says

      Aug 6, 2014 at 8:16 pm

      I prefer to call Luxenberg an idiot and a fraud. Luckily you don’t have to know either classical arabic nor syriac to realize that Luxenberg is an idiot.

      ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

      Oh stuff it, happyboy! …it’s obvious that you’re the “idiot”, so get a mirror, whydontcha.

    • Angemon says

      Aug 6, 2014 at 8:52 pm

      happyboy wrote:

      “I have actually debated with Mr Spencer himself.”

      Is the debate available for viewing on any video sharing website?

      “I’ve read the book. Trust me. I guess the few lines Mr Spencer offer on page 196 that “there may have been a a mysterious prophet whose words and deeds somewhat resemble those of the prophet of Islam and differ sharply from them in important ways” is as far as Mr Spencer is prepared to go in specifying the charcteristics of a man lost in the mists of history”

      The reason I doubted you read the book is that you tried to compare Aslan’s Zealot and Robert’s Did Muhammad Exist on the basis of what they say regarding Jesus’ and muhammad’s biographies and messages. Robert published a book regarding muhammad’s biography (although an abridged biography) and message. That book is The Truth About Muhammad, not Did Muhammad Exist.

      Also, I believe you’re misquoting and misrepresenting what’s on the book. I own the ebook version, I searched for your exact quote and got 0 hits. I searched for “whose words and deeds” and got one hit. But it’s not exactly what you quoted:

      “There was the mysterious Arabian prophet to whom the Doctrina Jacobi refers, whose words and deeds somewhat resemble those of the prophet of Islam and differ sharply from them in important ways“.

      Those words are not about muhammad himself, they refer to one of the existing materials that may have been used to create muhammad as we know today. Other than the prophet in the Doctrina Jacobi Robert also mentions the MHMT referred by a christian priest named Thomas in 640 and the “Muhammad” inscription found in coins made around the time of the early arab conquests who also featured a cross. It’s unclear whether the “Muhammad” inscription was a given name or a title.

      • happyboy says

        Aug 7, 2014 at 3:43 pm

        This is silly. The quote is exactly as in the e-book edition of Spencer’s book. And you don’t seem to have read his books well enough. What you don’t seem to have noticed is that Spencer himself in “Did Muhammad exist?” negates most of what he said earlier in “The Truth about Muhammad”. Knowadays a more correct title of the book should be “The Truth about the Words and Deeds of Muhammad that were made up by other folks”

        • Champ says

          Aug 7, 2014 at 3:48 pm

          Real or imagined, one thing is certain …

          muhammad (perdition be upon him) was one evil guy! …and you are a fool for following such evil.

          Get. lost.

        • Mirren10 says

          Aug 7, 2014 at 4:10 pm

          ” What you don’t seem to have noticed is that Spencer himself in “Did Muhammad exist?” negates most of what he said earlier in “The Truth about Muhammad”.

          Well, this is just witless !

          Mr Spencer wrote in the ”Truth about Mohammed”, a refutation of all the lying hagiographic crap that mohammedans use either to try to make us ‘infidels’ believe this pig of a man was actually a good person, or to snow other mohammedans who haven’t read either the koran or hadiths. The refutation used **original Islamic sources**, to show that all the claptrap about mohammed being a good man, was just that, claptrap.

          Mr Spencer’s book ”Did Mohammed exist ? ” is an exploration of the **historicity** of mohammed.

          Two entirely **different** premises !

        • Angemon says

          Aug 7, 2014 at 6:06 pm

          happyboy posted:

          “This is silly. The quote is exactly as in the e-book edition of Spencer’s book.”

          Well, that statement raises an issue. The quote in my ebook is different from what you quoted, apparently from an ebook too. You made no mention of the Doctrina Jacobi. You also left out that Robert wasn’t talking about muhammad in that quote, he was talking about one of the myths or legends that may have been mixed together and shaped into the muhammad as we know today.

          “And you don’t seem to have read his books well enough. What you don’t seem to have noticed is that Spencer himself in “Did Muhammad exist?” negates most of what he said earlier in “The Truth about Muhammad”.”

          I’d say the one likely not to have read Robert’s books well enough is the one who claimed Robert didn’t touch an issue and then had to save face by saying he threw the book away before getting to that part (hint: it was not me). The Truth About Muhammad (TTAM) is a look on how muhammad is presented in islamic traditions and sources while Did Muhammad Exist (DME) is a study on how historically reliable those sources are. Those two things are neither incompatible nor mutually exclusive.

          BTW, i find hard to believe that “the few lines[in DME] Mr Spencer offer on page 196 that “there may have been a a mysterious prophet whose words and deeds somewhat resemble those of the prophet of Islam and differ sharply from them in important ways” is as far as Mr Spencer is prepared to go in specifying the charcteristics of a man lost in the mists of history” are enough to make “Did Muhammad exist?” negate[s] most of what he [Robert Spencer] said earlier in “The Truth about Muhammad”, which is a book that, among other things, specifies muhammad’s characteristics.

        • gravenimage says

          Aug 7, 2014 at 10:28 pm

          Exactly so, Mirren.

  32. happyboy says

    Aug 6, 2014 at 8:38 pm

    Mr Spencer,
    I am not the least afraid to show my face. My name is Antonio Jerez and we had actually a short debate on Loren Rosson’s blog a few weeks ago. Anybody can see it. If you or me won the debate is up to others to decide – though I don´t have any doubt what” your” trolls on the blog (who usually prefer to hide under pseudonyms) will say on the matter. It is certainly true that the book I referred to doesn’t deal directly with your own book “Did Muhammad exist”, but I think it is pretty obvious that many of the essays show on what shaky foundations your guesswork about the origins of Islam are based. Not the least the kind of arabic the Quran displays, the style of the suras, the contents etc etc. And you don´t have to be a genius to see that an essay like the one Stefan Wild directs against a star “witness” of yours like Luxenberg is pretty devastating. If you use people like Luxenberg you do it at your own peril, and don´t expect real experts to get into a debate with you. They won’t do it and for good reasons.
    I asked Loren to send a copy of the book to you in e-book format. Since you already have it I’ll tell him not to send it. I am sure Loren will see your own book on Muhammad in a new light after reading “The Quran in context” himself.

    Best Wishes

    Antonio Jerez

  33. Robert Spencer says

    Aug 6, 2014 at 8:44 pm

    Antonio Jerez:

    I do hope people will go to Loren Rossen’s blog, as there they will see the quality of your specific objections to my thesis in “Did Muhammad Exist?,” and my responses.

    That was, however, simply a statement from you and my reply. That is not a debate.

    In any case, you said above that you had sent the book to me. You had not. It is always better to tell the truth.

  34. happyboy says

    Aug 6, 2014 at 9:06 pm

    Mr Spencer,
    sometimes you have to take shortcuts. If one wants to be 100 % correct I should have said that I had sent the book to you through Loren (since I don’t have your own e-mail adress). It is as simple as that.
    And I still think “The Quran in context” is almost as good an indictment as you can get against your theories about the creation of the Quran. I am sure that about 99,99999999999999999 % of secular and Christian islamologists will agree with me. I rest my case. And I don’t care what the trolls on the blog think.

  35. Robert Spencer says

    Aug 6, 2014 at 9:09 pm

    Antonio Jerez:

    Loren didn’t send me the book either. Keep digging.

    I don’t care about majorities. Most people in Nazi Germany loved Hitler, too.

    • happyboy says

      Aug 6, 2014 at 10:31 pm

      Mr Spencer,
      I usually don’t care that much for majorities either when it comes to most sciences. I have learnt to have a healthy sceptism until you have taken a look at the evidence yourself. I know that many scholars with all kind of degrees can be pure idiots. The Bible business is full of such fools (bishop NT Wright just to name one). Just as I know that selftaught amateurs without any big titles can sometimes be a lot better than the professionals (Stephen C Carlson just to name one). So the simple truth is that I am not judging you based on your lack of titles, I am only judging you based on the way you sift the evidence for the way the Quran may have been created and whom it most probably would have come from. The problem is that you have a very oneyed, selective way of chosing evidence. Anything that fits my wayward hypothesis you kling on to eagerly, even if the evidence is grounded in almost nothing (Luxenberg comes to mind) and even if a scholar has rejected her sins of youth (Patricia Crone). Anything that doesn’t fit my wayward hypethesis I avoid talking about as much as possible (the contributions made by many scholars in the “Quran in context” comes to mind). As far as I see it this is the methodology that you prefer, and it doesn’t make any points with me. Neither will it make any points among islamologists or historians. I am sure about that. You know it and I know it. And you and I know that this has nothing to do with being loved. It is about your methods and your feeble efforts to prop up a fringe hypothesis (to say the least) at whatever cost, even if it has to be with the help of fools like Luxenberg.

      Goodnight from Sweden

      • Robert Spencer says

        Aug 6, 2014 at 10:48 pm

        “You know and I know it.”

        No, I don’t. And anyway you haven’t offered anything to refute Luxenberg except name-calling. Ad hominems make for weak arguments. You can call him an idiot and a fool all night but it won’t make him one.

        • happyboy says

          Aug 7, 2014 at 4:12 pm

          Robert Spencer wrote:
          “No, I don’t. And anyway you haven’t offered anything to refute Luxenberg except name-calling. Ad hominems make for weak arguments. You can call him an idiot and a fool all night but it won’t make him one.”

          That is hardly true. You seem to have fortgotten that I already pointed toward the book “The Quran in context”, and more specifically toward the essay by Stefan Wild. There is also another essay in the book that deals with Luxenberg; Walid A. Sahleh’s ” The etymological fallacy and quranic studies”. Exellent little essay that too by a professional in the field. Sahleh doesn’t say outright that Luxenberg is an idiot but a glance through the essay makes it very clear what Saleh actually thinks about Luxenberg and his methods. Just to quote a snippet from Sahleh’s essay: “The work (Luxenberg’s) has fundamental flaws in its methodology, indeed if one could call such a hash of a work methodical in any way, in itself reason not to bother reviewing it. The book, however has generated such exitement – never before has a work on Quranic studies been featured in major European and American newspapers and magazines – that a refutation of its faulty premises has to be undertaken”
          What Mr Saleh is actually saying is that he believes it is beneath his dignity as a scholar to deal with Luxenberg. He is prepared to do it anyway because of all the media frenzy Luxenberg’s hypothesis created. Applause to Sahleh.

  36. gravenimage says

    Aug 6, 2014 at 9:52 pm

    Here’s more from Antonio Jerez in 2008, sneering at the idea that Jihad represents a threat to us at all:

    “I think I´ll leave the discussion if Islam may or may not be inherently more violent than other major religions for another day. I´m flying to Turkey for a short vacation tomorrow and have to pack my bag…”

    http://earliestchristianhistory.blogspot.com/2008/11/more-jesus-in-age-of-terror-hideously.html

  37. gravenimage says

    Aug 6, 2014 at 10:09 pm

    Back to Reza Aslan himself on Bill Maher’s last show, he posited that Muslims *crucifying* their victims in the new “Caliphate” was no big deal, whereas civilian casualties in Gaza were.

    And why? Because Israel espouses goodness and decency, but that we should expect—and, one supposes, *excuse*—savagery on the part of Jihadists, because that is what they are known for.

    How appalling.

    And yet, we’ve heard this before.

    That would mean that any small perceived lapse on the part of a genuinely moral and decent person must be savagery excoriated, but the most horrific evil on the part of someone who makes no claims to be anything but a vicious sociopath are perfectly acceptable. *Ugh*.

    Reacting to this, Bill Maher said that Israel is unfairly held to a different standard than other countries, what he aptly termed “the soft bigotry of high expectations” …

    http://www.algemeiner.com/2014/07/21/bill-maher-israel-is-victim-of-soft-bigotry-of-high-expectations-video/

  38. Arex T says

    Aug 7, 2014 at 11:14 pm

    Just looking at Reza’s shirt reminds me of this song so much. 🙂

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