Miss Kelly

"Sudbury to Mumbai: Connecting the Dots"

Excellent video from Americans for Peace and Tolerance....

Aafia Siddiqui - "I Wouldn't Want Her Living Next Door"

While Islamists around the world (and Tarek Mehanna here in the Boston area) - and their leftist "usfeul idiots" supporters - are falling over themselves with sympathy for Aafia Siddiqui, not all Muslims think she's the victim in all this.  As one blogger writes, "I wouldn't want her living next door."

Blogger Signy (an ex-Muslim), who blogs at Here in Glitnir , wrote about Aafia some months ago.  I've excerpted pieces from the blogpost, but I encourage you to read the whole thing. (The bolding is mine.)

"AafiaSiddiqui is one of the live-martyrs of the Islamist armchair jihobbyists. Yvonne Ridley, everyone’s favorite shrill hardcore convert, dubbed her the ‘grey lady of Bagram’ and insists, with a large chorus of fans, that Siddiqui was held at Bagram for four years, tortured and raped daily by those mean awful kafir Americans. It is no different than the fairy tales that are made up – or those stories which turn out to be somewhat true – about the treatment of any accused Islamist terrorist, except that she is a woman. And nothing offends the jihobbyist and Muslim masses more than when someone who isn’t a Muslim man is said to be mistreating a Muslim woman."

"The E-Mails Were Benign and Contained No Threat"

Fort Hood Sudden Jihadi/Traitor/Murderer Nidal Malik Hasan had an e-mail correspondence with radical imam Anwar Awlaki in Yemen:

"The Army psychiatrist accused of killing 12 soldiers and a civilian at the Fort Hood Army post exchanged between 10 and 20 e-mails with a radical cleric in Yemen who calls for jihadism against the United States, senior government officials said Monday."

"Officials determined that the communications were benign and contained no threat."

Hmm, that's ringing a bell.  Local suburban aspiring jihadi Tarek Mehann is being held at the Plymouth County Correctional Center.  His lawyer filed a motion for release on bail pending his trial earlier this week. 

"In the motion, Carney argues the evidence against Mehanna comes from Internet conversations and videos he shared with others. Investigators have said Mehanna allegedly used a blog to promote jihad and watched jihadist videos with associates."

From the motion (page 11):

"The case against Dr. Mehanna rests primarily on Internet-based text conversations he had with people...The Internet-based conversations contain absolutely no indication that Dr. Mehanna planned to harm others or conspired with others to inflict harm."

Sounds familiar: don't worry, nothing to worry about here!

Haven't we learned yet that there is nothing "benign" or harmless about jihadi ideology? 

 

Sickened Over Ft. Hood Shootings

I'm still sickened on many levels over the massacre at Ft. Hood post in Texas on November 5, 2009.  Where to start?

• Backstabber - Baldilocks uses the term "backstabber" for Nidal Malik Hasan,and writes: "...this incident takes us back to when another Muslim called Hasan turned on his fellow soldiers.  Recalling that, I began to wonder how often U.S. military have turned their weapons on those who trusted them most."
  
• Negligence
- I'm dumbfounded by the incredible negligence of the U.S. Army that kept and promoted Major Nidal Malik Hasan, given the many warning signs over years.  Read this NPR transcript, which discusses Hasan's statements at a Grand Rounds at Walter Reed hospital: "Hasan apparently gave a long lecture on the Koran and talked about how if you don't believe, you are condemned to hell. Your head is cut off. You're set on fire. Burning oil is burned down your throat." The staff was very concerned, another Muslim doctor objected to what Hasan said, and nobody does anything?  Hasan is later promoted to Major?  

• Treason - Jerry Pournells gets it exactly correct: it doesn't matter if Hasan was "a crazy guy who happens to be Muslim."  What matters is that political correctness in the military allowed this horrible massacre to happen. 

Reading Between the Lines - FBI Affadavit on Tarek Mehenna

Local media coverage of Tarek Mehanna, the Sudbury, MA "wannabe" terrorist,was extensive yesterday, covered on radio, TV and news websites, but it was rather limited in scope.  The media stories focused on how shocked, shocked people were that an educated, affluent young Muslim was accused of planning to commit terrorist activities.  And especially Tarek Mehanna, that gentle soul, his neighors and classmates couldn't believe that he wanted to wage jihad and kill kufirs (non-believers).  The other angle frequently reported was that Tarek was an incompetent wannabe terrorist: he couldn't get his hands on good weapons,  he was turned away by terrorist groups, he was a "tinhorn terrorist."  The unspoken conclusion for many folks was that Mehanna probably never would have committed such a terrorist act.  People wouldn't be so smug though, if Tarek and co-conspirator Ahmed Abousamra had pulled off a Mumbai-type attack.  From the DOJ press release:

"Acting U.S. Attorney Michael K. Loucks and Warren T. Bamford, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI - Boston Field Division, announced today that Tarek Mehanna, 27, of 6 Fairhaven Circle, Sudbury, Mass., was charged in a complaint with conspiracy to provide material support to terrorists."

".... It is alleged that, among other things, that would prepare them for armed jihad against U.S. interests, including U.S.Mehanna and two of his associates traveled to the Middle East in February 2004, seeking military-type training at a terrorist training camp that would prepare them for armed jihad against U.S. interests, including U.S. and and allied forces in Iraq. The complaint also alleges that one of Mehanna's coconspirators made two similar trips to Pakistan in 2002."

"According to the complaint affidavit, Mehanna and the coconspirators had multiple conversations about obtaining automatic weapons and randomly shooting people in a shopping mall, and that the conversations went so far as to discuss the logistics of a mall attack, including coordination, weapons needed and the possibility of attacking emergency responders."

There is much more that the media could be looking at in this case.  I'll start with reviewing FBI Special Agent Heidi L. Williams affadavit, and pulling out the elements that caught my eye:

• There's more info on this case than what the DOJ and FBI have revealed so far. The affidavit states that "it does not, however, include all the information known to me with respect to this investigation, but only that information which is necessary to establish the requisite probable cause." We'll have to wait for a trial to get more of the scoop.

• The affidavit supports the criminal complaint against Tarek Mehanna with conspiring with AHMED ABOUSAMRA ("ABOUSAMRA") and others to provide material support to terrorists. There's lots of background on Mehanna. I've not heard or read one single news story that tells us who Ahmed Abousamra is, not a one. Ahmed skipped the country in December 2006 after he was interviewed by the FBI, reportedly fleeing to Syria. Ahmed is the eldest son of Dr. Abdul Abousamra, an endocrinologist who was a Big Kahuna in the local Muslim community, now unfortunately so dominated by the Muslim American Society (MAS)/Muslim Brotherhood. Dr. Abousamra was the president of the Islamic Academy of New England and he hired Muhammed Masood at the IANE school (more on Masood here! ). The good doctor was also a MAS director , a "Free Imam" offerred to local Boston colleges, and on the Board of Directors of the Islamic Center of New England (ICNE) in Sharon, MA. We will come back to Abousamra in another blogpost, but isn't it worth looking at the background of the co-conspirator as well as Mehanna's background? Isn't it remarkable that the son of one of the leading Muslim "leaders" has been throroughly radicalized, and the father didn't notice? Like I said, more to come on Abousamra. The Dr. recently moved to Dearborn, MI, I'm told.

Rape as Recruiting Tool for Female Suicide Bombers

UPDATE BELOW

Another example of the culture of death in the Middle East:

A woman accused of helping recruit dozens of female suicide bombers looked into the camera and described the process: trolling society for likely candidates and then patiently converting the women from troubled souls into deadly attackers.

"....the woman said she was part of a plot in which young women were raped and then sent to her for matronly advice. She said she would try to persuade the victims to become suicide bombers as their only escape from the shame and to reclaim their honor."

This is how our enemy operates.

UPDATE:  Ewwww,  it's not just for women.  "Al Quaeda accused of using rape to create male suicide bombers."

"The Sun quotes Algerian militant Abu Baçir El Assimi: 'The sexual act on young (male) recruits aged between 16 to 19 was a means to urge them to commit suicide operations.' "

"The paper claims that 'intense social stigma and fear of more gay sex attacks leaves Muslims prepared to die.'  Rape and homosexual acts are punishable by death under Sharia law."

Hamas and Fatah Fighting on the Steps of MN Capitol Building

On the steps of the Minnesota State Capitol in St. Paul, Hamas supporters shout down Representative Keith Ellison and Fatah supporters, and start burning an Israeli flag (thanks to the Minnesotans Against Terrorism):

When you watch that video, this video doesn't seem like satire anymore. It sickens me to watch this going on in our country.  

Salah Soltan Calls for US Destruction (Again)

Salah Soltan was the person who initially got me interested in keeping an eye on what different Islamic groups were doing in the Boston area.  Dr. Soltan was the featured speaker at an Al Huda Society (of Revere) fund-raising dinner back in October 2005. (The dinner was held at the Irish American Club of Medford, MA of all the unlikely places.  Faith and begorah!!)  Dr. Soltan was also an invited lecturer at the Islamic Society of Boston prior to the Al Huda event. 

I did some online research on Dr. Soltan, who lived in Columbus OH at the time, and what I found was disturbing: He supported suicide bombing, wanted to see Israel destroyed, counseled an American women to accept that her husband took a second wife, counseled another American women that she can't leave the house without her husband's permission.  Yowzaa.  Solomonia did additional research and published his findings here.   I was dumbfounded that the Islamic Society of Boston and Al Huda would invite a man who held these beliefs.  I thought back then, "If this is moderate Islam," we're in for trouble."  And so we are.

Patrick Poole of Central Ohioans Against Terror has done a terrific job of tracking Dr. Soltan, and you can read about Soltan's latest diatribes against the US at Pajamas Media here.  A few of Soltan's latest quotable quotes, made last week on Egytian TV:

"America, which gave [Israel] everything it needed in these battles, will suffer economic stagnation, ruin, destruction, and crime, which will surpass what is happening in Gaza. One of these days, the U.S. will suffer more deaths than all those killed in this third Gaza holocaust. This will happen soon."

Yup, FBI Arrests Boston Blogger!

OK, I got a vowel wrong, the FBI arrested Tariq Mehanna, not Mohanna.  From today's Boston Globe:

"Statements that Tarek (correction: Tariq) Mehanna allegedly made to the FBI two years ago in the midst of a terrorism investigation came back to haunt him last weekend, when the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy graduate was arrested as he was about to board a Boston flight to start a new job overseas."

"Mehanna, 26, who was living in a sprawling house in Sudbury with his parents, is charged with lying to the FBI in December 2006 when questioned about the whereabouts and activities of Daniel J. Maldonado, a former Methuen resident who was suspected of training at an Al Qaeda terrorist camp to overthrow the Somali government."

"An FBI affidavit unsealed in federal court in Boston Monday alleges that Mehanna told agents on Dec. 16, 2006, that he had known Maldonado for three or four years and that when he last spoke to him two weeks earlier, Maldonado was living in a suburb of Alexandria, Egypt, and working for a website."

"But Maldonado had actually placed several calls from Somalia to Mehanna's Sudbury home four days before the FBI interview, urging him to 'join him in training for jihad,' the affidavit says."

"After Maldonado's capture a month later, a cooperating witness secretly recorded conversations with Mehanna, who fretted about lying to the FBI, according to the affidavit."

"...The complaint filed against Mehanna in Boston charges him with knowingly making false statements concerning an FBI investigation involving international terrorism. He is not facing any charges of terrorism."

The Globe reports that "a cooperating witness secretly recorded conversations with Mehanna".  Good to know there are people on the inside who are exposing these  jihadi supporters and wanna-be's. 

The Boston Globe article doesn't mention that Tariq Mehanna is likely blogger Abu Sayaba, who runs the 'Iskandari' blog which posts English language translations of classical Islamic texts in support of violent jihad.  And warns Muslim men that women are forbidden, especially "women of this country."   How do we know this?  According to The Jawa Report, Samir Khan of North Carolina, a violent jihad supporter, wrote about the arrest on his blog.  Samir Khan operate Inshallah Shaheed, an openly pro-jihad, pro-Osama website.  The New York Times wrote about Samir last year. 

You can read the Google-cached version of Samir Khan's blogpost about the arrest here (thanks, Howie!).  Quote:

"We have been informed from our brothers that are good friends with Abu Sabaya, that he was recently arrested in the Boston airport. He was on his way to his new hospital job to a Muslim Country when the FBI arrested him."

Kind of gives lie to the notion that Muslims are driven to jihadi ideology and terrorism due to poverty or oppression, doesn't it?  A pharmacology degree  and lives in Sudbury?

Something else is at work here.  We need to talk openly about the spread of Islamist ideology, be it by the Muslim Brotherhood or Deobandi or Salafi/Wahabis or the Islamic Front.  The feds can never arrest enough people to do more than make a dent, although these arrests and trials do put a damper on things and make people think twice.  Something much bigger is needed to counter the violent jihadi mentality, and to expose the "stealth" jihadi ideology that primes young Muslims to support violent jihad against the West. 

UPDATE: Latest from The Jawa Report here, putting the pieces together, compiling young Tarek's online jihadi friends. 

FBI Arrests Boston Area Blogger?

Hmm, this report isn't substantiated, perhaps some of my readers know if it's true.  From The Jawa Report:

"Samir Khan (wacky Jihadist supporting blogger in North Carolina) reports that a Boston area blogger who goes by the handle 'Abu Sayaba' has been arrested by the FBI. Abu Sayaba runs the 'Iskandari' blog which frequently posts English language translations of classical Islamic texts and rulings in support of violent jihad."

"...According to commenters who claim to know him, Abu Sayaba was a frequent protester at hearings regarding Aafia Siddiqui. Siddiqui was captured in Afghanistan, suspected of being an al Qaeda financier, and is accused of attempted murder. According to this post, Sayaba was in the audience at one of Siddiqui's hearings."

"....I haven't heard of any arrests in the Boston area related to terrorism. If any one has any information about the true identity of Sayaba or about an arrest made in Boston on terror related charges, please let me know."

Ditto.  Enquiring minds want to know if it's true.  Readers, know anything about this?

Abu Sayaba's Aafia Siddiqui post notes that Ms. Siddiqui was quite inspiring in encouraging Muslims to donate to various jihadi causes, and a local imam took off his shoes at a Bosnia fundraiser: "She was so effective in her plea that even the imam took off his boots and donated them!"  Which one, Bsayouney or Masood? 

Here's a Sayaba post warning Muslim menfolk about womenfolk, especially kufr American women:

"And stay away from women (and likewise, women should apply the same for men), as this as the source of all tribulation for those at your age, and in fact for those at any age. Stay from women who are forbidden for you. It is an obligation for you to stay away from them. Of course, all of the women in this land are forbidden for you. It is forbidden for you to look at them, it is forbidden for you to sit with them, it is forbidden for you to chat with them, and it is forbidden for you to be alone with them."

Alrighty then. Believe me, you're doing us kufr women a big favor!

Update: Survey says that a Tariq Mohanna was arrested today.  Not even in the newspapers yet.

Friday Miscellania

Andrew Bostum to speak tomorrow night on Islamic Antisemitism at Temple Beth Am, 871 North Main Street, Randolph, MA. The talk will be a full hour, starting at 9 P. Dr. Bostum recently edited The Legacy of Antisemitism - from Sacred Texts to Solemn History, which was reviewed at City Journal by Bruce Thornton.

As Kathy Shaidle succinctly puts it, "Tests for Down Syndrome actually kill healthy babies." A British study shows that "for every three babies found through prenatal testing to have Down syndrome, two babies without the condition are lost through miscarriage as a result of the mother having had the test, a new study in Britain estimates. About 660 babies each year in England and Wales are found through testing to have Down syndrome, say the authors. In most cases, parents choose to have an abortion. An estimated further 400 babies who are tested but found not to have the condition die as a result of a miscarriage." Grotesque.

The persecution of Christians in India: "If you were asked to name a country where it is dangerous to be a Christian, you would probably name an Islamic country or a dictatorship like China. You probably wouldn't name the largest democracy in the world, India. Yet some of the most horrific persecution of Christians is taking place in its state of Orissa."  Attacks on Christians, burning down their churches and homes, passing laws that make it illegal to convert from Hinduism to any other faith- it's all going on in parts of India.  Read the whole article here.

Sam Harris Telling It Like It Is...

Surprising indeed to see this essay, Losing Our Spines to Save Our Necks, at the Huffington Post.  Sam Harris writes about the loss of freedom of speech when we capitulate to Islamic threats.  Bravo to HuffPo for publishing his essay, one which the Washington Post refused to print.  It was deemed too critical of Islam.   Excerpts:

"(Gert) Wilders, who lives under perpetual armed guard due to death threats, recently released a 15 minute film entitled Fitna ("strife" in Arabic) over the internet. The film has been deemed offensive because it juxtaposes images of Muslim violence with passages from the Qur'an. Given that the perpetrators of such violence regularly cite these same passages as justification for their actions, merely depicting this connection in a film would seem uncontroversial. Controversial or not, one surely would expect politicians and journalists in every free society to strenuously defend Wilders' right to make such a film. But then one would be living on another planet, a planet where people do not happily repudiate their most basic freedoms in the name of 'religious sensitivity.' "

Poll Question: What Response to the Danish Cartoon?

Here's a poll question for you, from Jama'at ud Dawah in Pakistan:
"What should be the response of Muslim Ummah to the blasphemous caricatures published in Denmark?"
The options are:

1. Boycott Danish products and Services
2. Expel Danish ambassadors from Muslim countries
3. Kill the Cartoonist and the Editors who published it
4. Ignore this nonsense and keep preaching Islam with peace

Survey says: Kill the cartoonist!

Out of 194 votes so far, 22 voted for a boycott of Danish products, 10 voted to expel the ambassador, 40 voted to keep preaching, and 122 (63%) voted to kill the cartoonist and editor. 

Jama'att ud Dawah is considered a terrorist front group, an offshoot of Lashkar e-Toiba.  Both organizations are banned in the U.S. The founder of both groups is Hafiz Saeed, who has had at least three close relatives living in Massachusetts. All three were imams at Massachusetts mosques, in Lowell, Sharon and Worcester, although there's only one working imam now (Abdul Hannan in Lowell).   There's another brother in the U.S. too.

Jeff Jacoby and Irshad Manji on Fitna the Movie

Jeff Jacoby has a good review of Geert Wilder's 15-minute film Fitna, and he notes a disconnect: there's a greater condemnation about a movie which depicts violence done in the name of the Koran, than there is for the violence acts themselves.

"....it isn't as though Wilders had to invent anything. The violence Fitna portrays is horribly real, and the fanatics who commit it are explicit in saying they do so as Muslims."

"Where is the Islamic world's outrage against that? When has Iran's foreign ministry ever excoriated the beheading of a hostage, or the poisonous sermon of a jihadist imam, as 'heinous, blasphemous, and anti-Islamic?' How often has the Organization of the Islamic Conference thundered its disapproval of 'honor killings' or Islamist anti-semitism? When Theo van Gogh was murdered in public, when the Taliban turned Afghanistan into a repressive terror state, when fatwas were issued for the murder of Danish cartoonists  - where was the chorus of Muslim anguish then?"

Irshad Manji thinks that Fitna was a boring harangue, and that Geert Wilders missed an opportunity to make an even better film:

"A more engaging approach would have been to pepper the film with positive verses from the Qur'an, thereby revealing that Muslims who expound hostility are actively choosing to ignore the better angels of Islam."

"There are plenty of positive passages to highlight. The possibility for women's dignity is shown by 3:195, which states that God rewards 'any worker among you, be you male or female -- you are equal to one another.' Imagine aligning that passage with the shot of a woman's body mutilated by an honor killing."

By all means, Irshad, make that movie.  That could be a powerful statement. But who decides which Koranic passages to believe and act upon, and which to ignore?  Can any of Allah's literal words be refuted or ignored? 

Robert Spencer asks where is the outrage over this children's film produced by Hamas, a puppet show of a child killing President Bush?

Please act now and sign a petition to the Dutch government in support of Geert Wilders here. 

   

Nice While It Lasted - FITNA Pulled from LiveLeak

Nice while it lasted, but Geert Wilder's 15-miunute film Fitna was pulled from Live Leak, who issued this statement:

"Following threats to our staff of a very serious nature, and some ill informed reports from certain corners of the British media that could directly lead to the harm of some of our staff, Liveleak.com has been left with no other choice but to remove Fitna from our servers."

"This is a sad day for freedom of speech on the net but we have to place the safety and well being of our staff above all else. We would like to thank the thousands of people, from all backgrounds and religions, who gave us their support. They realised LiveLeak.com is a vehicle for many opinions and not just for the support of one."

Don't say anything about violent religious fanatics or they'll get more violent?

If only people objected to "religous" clerics who preach hatred more than they objected to short movies that document it.   Anyway, the film is now posted at Jawa Report.  Watch it while you can.

Geert Wilder's Movie "Fitna"

Geert Wilders of the Netherlands faces death threats and lives under 24-hour security because - among other things - he made this film.   Fitna (which means "discord" in Arabic)  exposes violent passages from the Quoran and shows numerous examples of Islamists who take these passages literally today.  Wilders has been threatened with death for making this short film about a religiously-motivated, violent ideology.  Just like the Pope's Regensburg speech, the response rather proves the point. 

That's reason enough to spread this movie far and wide.  YouTube won't show it, but Live Leak does.  Please watch and tell your friends.

 Excellent post by Spengler at Asia Times,  Blessed Are the Pre-emptors.  Spengler calls Wilders "Europe's Man of Destiny."

"Strictly speaking, I do not quite agree with Wilders that the Koran should be banned along with Hitler’s Mein Kampf as an incitement to violence.  Nonetheless, he is doing precisely the right thing. A house divided against itself cannot stand, as Abraham Lincoln quoted the Gospels as he made ready to tear down the half that was misbehaving. No civilized state can abide a rival from within who contests the monopoly of violence of legitimate government. If governments refuse to act, the optimal course of action is pre-emptive: bring matters to a decision as fast as possible before the rot destroys the entire house." 

 

Salman Rushdie Speaking in Baltimore, Islamists to Protest

Salman Rushdie is speaking in Baltimore tonight, and his Islamist critics are planning to be there too.

"World-renowned author Salman Rushdie will be making his first-ever appearance in Baltimore as a part of the Baltimore Speakers series.  We’ll learn Mr. Rushdie’s impressions on the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, this week’s Pakistani elections, and get a preview of his forthcoming novel, The Enchantress of Florence."

I hope the security is robust. Apparently there's some angry Islamists in the area who plan to protest Mr. Rushdie's appearnace.  From the online magazine, Jama-at al-Muslimeen, a blog hosted by a Yahoo 360, here's the scoop on the protest.  There's a hint of violence in the planned protest : "One who sees wrongdoing should remove it physically..."

Jamaat al-Muslimeen [News] 
P.O. Box 10881
Baltimore, MD 21234

February 26: Rally Against Rushdie: Meyerhoff Hall, 1212 Cathedral Street, Baltimore: What does Islam Say?

By Kaukab Siddique

Would you protest pornographic abuse against your father or your mother? Here is what Islam says.

"The Prophet is more important for the believers than their own selves, and his wives are as their mothers." [The Qur'an 33:6]

Are insults against the Messenger, pbuh, and his family a minor matter or are they central to our Islamic response?

"Those who insult God and His Messenger will be rejected by God in this world and the next - He has prepared a humiliating punishment for them - and those who undeservedly insult believing men and women will bear the guilt of slander and obvious sin." [33:57. Translation by M. Abdel Haleem.]

More on Rushdie Protest in Baltimore

Reading between the lines, I'd say there's some things to be worried about with the Muslim communities in the Baltimore area, and some things to be a little heartened by. According to the afore-mentioned online blog/magazine, Jama'at al-Muslimeen, flyers about a protest for "the dirty hater Rushdie" received different levels of enthusiasm:

Outreach: Mobilizing Muslim Opinion Against Rushdie and NPR-Villa-Julie-Meyerhoff Hate Campaign

February 22, 2008: At the Islamic Society of Baltimore (ISB, also known as Masjid Rahma) a flyer about the February 26 rally urging Muslims to protest the honors being awarded to Islam-hater Rushdie was given to 215 people. Most of the response was lukewarm. The clique in charge of the masjid refused to announce the rally. Instead they had a juma' khateeb repeatedly calling on people to join ISNA-CAIR, which anti-Islam groups working closely with the FBI, the Pentagon and the White House. (Editor- who knew?!) Some of the recipients of the rally flyer responded positively but these were about 10% of the 215.

By contrast, at a small masjid located 5 miles away from ISB, flyers were given to only 25 people; the response was entirely positive. The people here were outraged that a dirty hater like Rushdie would be invited and honored. 

At another small masjid about 4 miles from ISB, the imam himself announced the rally, reaching about 75 people.

A number of sincere Muslim groups have broken away from ISB and have set up independent masjids. A report says that some time back, the imam of ISB resigned and set up an Islamic teaching center up the street from Rahma. We have heard that he tried to get ISB to see the Sunnah ruling on the crescent sighting requirements for Ramadan and Eid, but ISB adamantly [and blindly] followed the governmental-agent organization known as ISNA. [Those who know more about this are welcome to let us know in confidence.]

Oh, the splinterings of the various Muslim groups. 

Which mosque, pray tell, might be the "small masjid located 5 miles away from ISB"?  Who's the imam there?  Does it have an Islamic school?  If so, what are they teaching children?   

 

On This Day - First World Trade Center Attack

Fifteen years ago, the violent jihad against the U.S. began:

"An explosion apparently caused by a car bomb in an underground garage shook the World Trade Center in lower Manhattan with the force of a small earthquake shortly after noon yesterday, collapsing walls and floors, igniting fires and plunging the city's largest building complex into a maelstrom of smoke, darkness and fearful chaos."

Andrew McCarthy of NRO looks back at what was really planned. 

From the front page of the NYT on February 26, 1993:

"Have We Decided to Accept Violence as a Legitimate Response to Humor?"

There was a great letter to the editor in today's Boston Globe, in response to an earlier letter about the  reprinting of the Mohammed cartoons in a Danish newspaper.   The original Globe article is here  ("Danish newspapers reprinted cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed in a gesture of solidarity yesterday after police revealed a plot to kill the creator of the caricature that sparked deadly riots in the Muslim world").  The initial letter to the editor from a BU professor is here.  The professor asked if freedom of speech includes the feedom to "stir up fear by publishing a drawing that has already proved incendiary".  The professor also pointed to Archbishop Rowan Williams recent call to look at integrating sharia law into the English legal system, as a way to "make the Muslims feel at home." 

Anyway, the Boston Globe published this terrific letter from Sage of Middlebury VT today: