Kudos to Adam Reilly of the Boston Phoenix for writing Scared Silent, about the reluctance of Boston media to cover the Islamic Society of Boston:
"Dr. Walid Fitaihi’s departure from and return to the Islamic Society of Boston (ISB) were stories worth reporting. After all, the possibly polemical physician’s writings helped ignite the controversy that dogged the ISB from the autumn of 2003 until June 2007, when the opening of the ISB’s new mosque in Roxbury seemed to bring the matter to a close. So why didn’t the Boston press pay attention when Fitaihi quietly left the ISB’s board of trustees earlier this year — or when he returned just four months later, after dueling lawsuits involving the ISB were dropped?"
Most excellent question, glad that someone in Boston's media is paying attention. Miss Kelly and Solomonia are mentioned too:
".....no major Boston media outlet took note of Fitaihi’s departure and return earlier this year. (Only two local conservative blogs, Solomonia and Miss Kelly .... seemed to notice.) What’s more, a conciliatory meeting Fitaihi had with a group of Jewish leaders in April was covered only by the Jewish Advocate."
"....reporting on anything that involves Fitaihi would require explaining why, exactly, he’s a significant figure. And this, in turn, would have meant delving into some of the same details that helped put the Herald and WFXT on the receiving end of a lawsuit. Which brings us to the heart of the matter: has the Boston press decided that aggressively covering the ISB is too risky?
Another excellent question!
Reilly asks editors from the Herald and the Globe why they aren't covering any ISB developments. Herald editor Kevin Convey says:
“I don’t think anybody in the business would deny that major lawsuits . . . can have a chilling effect — not only on us, but on other people, as well.”
That's the intent of these lawsuits. They're effective, even when the plaintiff is forced to completely withdraw its lawsuit, as the ISB did in this case.
Boston Globe Metro editor Brian McGrory seems to think that "there haven’t been any major news developments." Mr. McGrory, let me pitch a few story ideas:
- The latest ISB trustee Dr. Jamal Badawi is named as an unindicted co-conspirator in the U.S. government's case against the Holy Land Foundation. There's a story there!
- There isn't much left of the ISB, it's been reorganized and subsumed by the Muslim American Society. Take a look at the latest MAS glossy annual report, which was handed out at the New Bostonians Community Day at City Hall earlier this week. (In 2001, Dr. Fitaihi identified Boston as a "center of Islamic proselytizing aimed at Christians"). MAS is controlling the ISB now. Yes, the same MAS that was founded by the Muslim Brotherhood.
- So who's funding the MAS? Who directs it? Are they a religious organization or a political organization? Considering how much lobbying and fund-raising they do on political issues, why are they tax-exempt?
- How many ISB/MAS leaders are on the board of directors of Al Huda in Revere, the ICNE in Sharon, the Islamic Society of Greater Lowell, the Islamic Society of Worcester, the American Islamic Institute, the Al-Hamra Academy of Shrewsbury, the Islamic Academy of New England in Mansfield, to name a few? Get a copy of Analyst's Notebook link analysis software, and have at it.
You can review my earlier postings on the ISB here and on the MAS here. Lest you think I am an anti-Muslim person, much of the information about the ISB and MAS that I blog about is sent to me by disaffected Muslims who are apalled by the ISB/MAS "leadership" in the Boston area. They can't believe that these Islamic fundamentalists are considered to be the voice of Massachusetts Muslims.
Solomonia's write-up is here. "Crickets. Running scared."
Great post Miss Kelly, and at least someone in the Boston Media is brave enough to ask these questions.
But what's a nice Catholic girl like you doing reading the Phoenix? ;-)
Posted by: papijoe | September 20, 2007 at 09:16 AM
Papijoe does not want a girl (Catholic) to read Phoenix!
America is a free country. And MAS Boston has the freedom to do what it wants to do. But it should walk thru the front door. It should tell its ideology and have a referendum about how many people want to support it KNOWINGLY. It should tell about the $2 million it spent on the law suite.....where it came from? How many orphans in Boston would have gone to College with this money to become productive members of American Society. (Isn't that why all of them get R-1 visa and covert).
"Stealth Islam" cannot control Boston by stealth.
There is something in Boston water that makes even ordinary, toiling,Muslims questioning.
They drink the tea but one night they dump it in the harbor and listen to: "don't shoot until you see the whites of their eyes". So, your Ideology, please. Before it gets to a point that it has to be coughed out.
How does the Government dole out all these R-1s without checking the "Denomination"?
Posted by: Azzam | September 20, 2007 at 11:02 AM
Brian McGrory's notion of "major news developments" is limited to new openings to rant and rave against the residents of Hingham.
Posted by: JSinger | September 20, 2007 at 01:47 PM