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Audacity of Truth
Gaffetastic:
Vice President Joe Biden had his “oops” moment Wednesday speaking in a 49er-crazed SF when he told a crowd at a city political fundraiser that “the Giants are on their way to the Super Bowl.” - SF Chronicle, 1-18-12
TIME magazine publishes hit piece on Rahman and the Christian right
For no apparent reason other than to make fun of the “Christian right.” Rachel Morarjee writes:
Western leaders breathed a sigh of relief yesterday at the release of Abdul Rahman, a Christian convert who had faced the death penalty under Afghanistan’s Islamic law for renouncing his Muslim faith. Rahman, 40, has become the poster boy for the Christian right and for religious freedom.
Ok, let’s start with that. Since when did Rahman become a “poster boy” for the Christian right? Does the Christian left not support religious freedom or something? Is the Christian left not concerned with the fact that a man was nearly put to death over the “crime” of converting to Christianity in a country where our military (and that of our coaltion) has shed blood and lost lives fighting for things like religious freedom? Those last two questions are rhetorical of course, but deserved the mention all the same.
Closer up, however, the picture painted by the local police who arrested him shows a candidate not quite ready for family values.
Uh, WHO is trying to turn him into a “family values” candidate here? Answer: no one – except maybe TIME magazine.
Rather, a portrait emerges of a deadbeat dad with psychological problems who couldn’t hold down a job, abused his daughters and parents and didn’t pay child support.
So, Rahman supposedly isn’t a model citizen, so does that mean his life shouldn’t be spared because of that? (Keep in mind these statements are coming from his family – and I’ll get to their credibility issues in a moment)
The article goes on to quote family members who don’t paint a flattering picture of Rahman, and includes quotes from family members who make clear that he is not welcome around them because he converted to Christianity. With that in mind, you’d think TIME magazine would make the same moral judgement against Rahman’s family they made against him. Rahman’s not a role model because he’s allegedly a deadbeat dad – the TIME article makes sure to point that out. But note they make no moral judgement against Rahman” family for disowning him for converting to Christianity.
One thing also left out of the article: It was Rahman’s family who turned him in to the authorities in the first place:
Officials say his family, who remain observant Muslims, turned him over to the authorities.
Yet it’s that family that TIME relies on to give us the facts on Rahman, only one of which he confirms.
Also, the article includes in it’s closing paragraph an apparent concern for Rahman’s family:
Now, both his daughters and the rest of his family are in hiding in Kabul, fearful that they could be targeted by a now liberated Rahman or by Islamic extremists.
But shows no concern for the fate of Rahman himself.
So why exactly was it important to publish this piece in the first place? TIME can’t possibly support the original punishment (death) pushed for by prosecutors there – so the only conclusion I can draw from this is that they wanted to paint Rahman in the worst possible light to show that he, as a “poster boy” of the Christian right (but not left) and the implication is clearly that he’s yet another family values role model for the Christian right who is not as pure as the driven snow as he’s supposedly being painted by the Christian right. In short: making moral judgements against a “poster boy” for the Christian right is within bounds, but making moral judgements against the family who turned him in for converting to Christianity in the first place is off limits. This is a thinly disguised and unwarranted hit piece on the Christian right and family values.
By the way, here’s an update on Rahman’s whereabouts:
ROME – The Afghan man who faced the death penalty for converting from Islam to Christianity received asylum in Italy Wednesday, despite requests by lawmakers in Afghanistan that he be barred from fleeing the conservative Muslim country.
Abdul Rahman arrived in Rome days after he was freed from a high-security prison on the outskirts of Kabul after a court dropped charges of apostasy against him for lack of evidence and suspected mental illness.
[...]
It also inspired an appeal by Pope Benedict XVI to Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai and efforts by the United Nations to find a country to take him in after Muslim clerics in Afghanistan threatened his life, saying his conversion was a “betrayal to Islam.”
Rahman was in the care of Italy’s Interior Ministry, Premier Silvio Berlusconi said Wednesday evening. “He is already in Italy,” he said. “I think he arrived overnight.”
The premier declined to release more details. The Interior Ministry said Rahman was “under protection.”
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This Rahman deal has been weird from the very begining. Was it not a Christian NGO, that first alerted the news media? The initial questions concerned his being put to death for his religious conversion and how that dynamic played against the backdrop of Americans dying as they spread democracy in Iraq and Afghanistan. At that point in the tale the Left was in all the way. Then it began to look like somebody talked this weak minded soul into making himself into an icon of some sort. The Left smelled a rat, and the rest you wrote about. Me, I don’t think we’re helping anyone over there and need our military gone from there pronto. Peace
steve he has been a converted christian for MANY years, he wa sturned into the authorities by his own family after a dispute.
I assume since the family member wanted him out of the picture, he was turned in because he had converted.
This was never an issue until then.
Christians will always rally in support of persecuted Christians.
but your a religous anarchist, you should know this.
Okay, here’s the deal about Abdul Rahman. He and his wife are divorced (this is an Islamic country…the probable reason would be because of his faith difference)… he probably couldn’t “hold down a job” because of his faith… he probably was a “deadbeat dad” because he couldn’t hold down a job… BECAUSE HE’S A CHRISTIAN IN A MUSLIM COUNTRY. His ex-wife wanted full custody of their children.. which is why this good Muslim woman turned her ex-in to the authorities for apostacy. It all but garaunteed his death and her custody.
My husband was in Iraq (82nd ABN DIV) from March’03-March’04) and what he, as a Christian, found in Baghdad was that 5 Christian families per day were leaving Iraq because of persecution from Muslims. Don’t dare convert from Islam… it’ll be your head, or your house, or your wife’s life, or your daughter’s virginity. Christians were disproportionately targeted for discrimination in the job market. They got the crappy low-paying jobs with no security (unless it was working for Saddam in his palaces… Saddam liked Christians because he could trust them; they didn’t lie, cheat, steal or take a bribe, unlike the Muslims). The justice system was bent against Christians because of Islamic law.
So before calling Abdul Rahman “insane” (or a loser), remember that it aligns you with the Muslims who seek to kill him. Also remember that Arabs aren’t known for telling the truth…. so whatever facts you think you hear from his enemies about his santity are most likely dismissable.
Great post, Sister.
Closer up, however, the picture painted by the local police who arrested him shows a candidate not quite ready for family values.
Stingray: a blog for salty Christians
Does the Christian left not support religious freedom or something? Is the Christian left not concerned with the fact that a man was nearly put to death over the “crime” of converting to Christianity in a country where our military (and that of our coaltion) has shed blood and lost lives fighting for things like religious freedom?
ST, the Christian Left has never supported religious freedom anywhere anytime. They ignore violence against Muslims and Christians by the Islamofascist terrorists in Iraq and elsewhere. They ignored the plight of Jews and Christians behind the Iron Curtain and even made kissy-kissy with their Communist tormentors. They call for restrictive speech codes on American universities so as to prevent all ideas except their own from being heard. They thrill to the slaughter of Jews in Israel by Hamas terrorists and call for divesting with companies that do business in Israel.
We know them now by their fruit that they bear.
Way to rally to the factual aspects of truth as ususal, steve. Do you ever actually pay attention or answer direct questions? Careful, this a trick.
Steve – as a man of “peace” and “non-violence” why not just stand up for this man who was to be put to death? Ah, but I’m sure we’ll all get to read some Zionist diatribe tomorrow. ST could write something about buying some linen at Bed Bath & Beyond and you could do wonders with that I’m sure. We’ll all have fun reading about it tomorrow.
Steve couldn’t pick the winner of a one horse race, forest hunter.
Jack.
To me, the Christian Left is an oxymoron…yet, I know several people who go to church, but are Dumb-ocrats.
Intellectually lazy, naive, or just plain stupid?
It’s important to keep in mind, Steve, that this guy was going to be put to death. Not for allegedly being a deadbeat dad, not for allegedly abusing his daughters…but as a consequence of the undisputed FACT that he says he converted from Islam to Christianity in a country where such actions will get you killed. That changes the picture considerably.
Hey Jack, Steve(FN) couldn’t find his own butt with both hands and if by accident he did find his butt he can’t squeeze it cause it would cut the blood supply off to his brain. Come to think of it he already has!
Sloan, if what you say is true, and it could well be, it puts your side into a very tight box. Which is, why are we in Afghanistan dying if the people are going to continue to kill each other using religion as the excuse? That’s like hitting yourself in the head with a hammer and telling people how wonderful it feels when you stop. The Left is gunshy, because it remembers Jessica Lynch, Pat Tillman, Abu Graeb and other instances where closer inspection uncovered a far different story then was first put forward by those in power. Paece
The left is gunshy as you put it, because they have nothing to stand on but retreat.
Thier base of support is comprised of defeatists who screech about supporting the troops but say they want them to come home immediately, damn thier mission, damn thier good works, they are doing evil in an illegal war, so the troops that have given thier lives and sacfrificed thier time, thier families, thier money, thier jobs in something that most think is worthwhile is irrelevant to the left.
Gunshy is not the word I would use to describe the left. They care not one wit about Jessica Lynch, Pat Tillman, Abu Graeb. They are nothing more than something to batter the current administration with, they are nothing more than a tool for the Left to use in trying to hurt the military and the administration.
DO NOT TELL ME HOW MUCH THE LEFT CARES ABOUT THE MILITARY!!!!
This sir will make you sound full of BS.
I can damn well gaurantee you the Left doesn’t give crap about the military. They bitch and moan about spending but if Clinton had not GUTTED the military we would not have had to spend as much to get ready or to get equipment back.
If they really card we wouldn’t have some idiot in California demonizing the military and wanting to get rid of it over there. In which I say FINE, pull all military bases out of CA (You can bet that will hurt them economically) and then pull all Federal Assistance out also. Your on your own CA.
What do you think?
The interesting question that comes to my mind is would the west be so zealous about saving rahman’s life had he converted to something other than Christianity?
I’m sure the obsession from the Christian angle does suggest that he could possibly be used as a posterboy by the obnoxious Christian right to spread their “gospel” and “saving” people.. lol. And this statement about the right doesn’t suggest at ALL that the Christian left doesn’t support religious freedom.
Casper Whine-berger, the old Zionist warmonger, spent more money on the military then all of the Secretaries of Defense before him put together and the world is no safer today then had we spent that money on almost anything except weapons. Large militaries destabilize the world situation, they do not stabilize it. Just because you like to kill, doesn’t make you any more brave or tough then an unarmed Peacemaker. Peace
It’s called Religous Persection, and I believe there would be just as much uproar if he had converted to Hindu or can you imagine a jewish faith? *gasp*
The reason it was more recognized in the US and more outcry came about was because we, the US, is a nation founded on Christian Principles so we feel a kiship to the person for one. Second, we fought and helped a governemtn come into place that supposedly supported religous diversity and to have this come about was a shock to the US.
Religous Persecution.
sighs
My spelling is bad today, sorry.
Yeah… same kinship arabs feel for the Muslim persecution. Sighs. Gotta love this religious kinship… makes u wanna barf.
Please, gives us examples of Muslim Persecution you are stating Raj.
I am sure that is eactly why they cut off heads, because they are being persecuted. I am sure that is why they wish to murder anyone of a different faith, whether it be Christian, Hindu, Jewish, whatever.
They do not want to kill this man because of Muslim persecution, and if that is what your saying then I want you to give us PROOF.
“They”, who is “They”? And if you don’t want your head cut off don’t drink a beer in the middle of the street, at noon, in downtown Riyadh. Peace
>”They”, who is “They”?
Nobody knows, senor. Only They know who is Them.
OK, couldn’t resist.
They as in ….
This Lynch Mob
That is ready to …to kill Abdul Rahman.
THEY as is in:
They as in:
They as in:
They will not recognize thier own courts, thier own laws, if the court sets him free they as a mob mentality will still murder him.
They as in:
They as in:
They as in mob rule steve.
Does that help you any?
Is this Muslim Persecution?
I suppose you could call it that, Muslim Persecution by muslims.
We have the Death Penalty in the good old USA, why shouldn’t Afghanistan have a Death Penalty? Your problem, sanity, is who they use their Death Penalty on. You Rightwing-nuts believe that any doctor who performs an abortion should be put to death, so do the Islamo-fascists. Neither the Rightwing-nuts or Islamo-fascists, could care less if the abortion doctor was a Christian or a Moslem or a Jew or an atheist, you want the person fried, right? You better free your mind instead. Peace
steve pull your head out…
your ignorance is amazing.
You have no actual answer so you equate what MOB RULE to our Court System.
Ok, let us go by your obvious ignorant answer of the facts, shall we:
steve equates the US Court System and US Laws to MOB RULE by saying, “We have the Death Penalty in the good old USA, why shouldn’t Afghanistan have a Death Penalty?”
Your coparison is rediculous and I let it stand as the idiotic staement that it is. The courts in Afghanistan are not calling for his death or saying if he is freed he should be killed, hung, pulled the pieces…it is the mobs outside of the courts.
I suppose you support lynching if the courts free a man, whether in the US or in Afghanistan, hmm?
steve correctly states, “Your problem, sanity, is who they use their Death Penalty on.”
Your right steve, for once. I have a problem with mob rule calling for the death of a man even when freed. I have a problem of any faith being persecuted just because a man, woman or child wishes to believe in something different.
But if you think it is just cause he decided to convert to Chritianity that I have the problem with, then you are completely wrong in your assessment once again.
steve rediculously slanders everyone who is anti-abortion by saying, ”
You Rightwing-nuts believe that any doctor who performs an abortion should be put to death, so do the Islamo-fascists.”
While I believe abortion is wrong in most instances (my personal belief), I do not suport killing the doctors, so ther in your arguement alone is flawed in itself. I know many believe the same way as I do, some less, some more.
Trying to link and group anti-abortion and extremist islam killers is a disgusting attempt to smear anyone who does not agree with your ideas of the issue steve, and like equating the US President with Nazi, you know damn well that it is incorrect yet you spew the idiocy anyways.
You better free your mind instead.
I could say the same steve.
steve(FN), you almost make sense, but in your hate of anything not Communist you blow it. All Communist regimes have a death penalty they regularly exercise upon people who don’t accept the Communist system. Too bad you can’t use your keyboard commando tactics to condemn your guys for using the death penalty.
ack! sorry missed a closing tag on that bold statement.
I just fixed it for you, sanity
— ST
Steve if we did have a death penalty for religious conversion, don’t you think that religious anarchists would be on that list??? Or is that what you want?? “Look at me, Look at me, I am dying for my beliefs, Look at me Everyone!!!”. That does seem to fit with the person. – Lorica
Thanks ST your the greatest.
If you understand what the Christian Right wants America to look like and compare it to what Islamo-fascists, want the world to be like, there are many similarities. They are not identical, but many of both groups “wish-fors” are the same. The Left is just trying to save the Right from itself and at the same time keep our Costitution intact. Peace
But steve, you understand nothing about Christians and have demonstrated that you no nothing about being right.