As the President made his magical mystery tour through Europe, he has entertained us with miscues, gaffes, and has succeeded quite well in the “offending folks” department. His constant apologies for our country have come to the point of being categorized as annoying. But his words and actions when it comes to Islam have been very curious, and, well, troubling.
Of course there is “the bow” before King Abdullah thing – we all know that the President of the United States is an equal among peers, and is not to bow before anyone. Even liberal Camille Paglia commented at Salon:
There has been one needless gaffe after another — from the president’s tacky appearance on a late-night comedy show to the kitsch gifts given to the British prime minister, followed by the sweater-clad first lady’s over-familiarity with the queen and culminating in the jaw-dropping spectacle of a president of the United States bowing to the king of Saudi Arabia. Why was protest about the latter indignity confined to conservatives? The silence of the major media was a disgrace.
But his statements before the Turkish Parliament have you thinking: “whoa, where did he come up with that?” The “We have a very large Christian population, we do not consider ourselves a Christian nation” statement will be discussed in another blog. There is another statement that has one wondering how well the President fared in American history.
“We will convey our deep appreciation for the Islamic faith, which has done so much over the centuries to shape the world — including in my own country.”
Mr. President, what country are you talking about? Robert Spencer from FrontPageMag.com shares:
Unless he considers himself an Indonesian, Obama’s statement was extraordinarily strange. After all, how has the Islamic faith shaped the United States? Were there Muslims along Paul Revere’s ride, or standing next to Patrick Henry when he proclaimed, “Give me liberty or give me death”? Were there Muslims among the framers or signers of the Declaration of Independence, which states that all men – not just Muslims, as Islamic law would have it – are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, including life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness? Were there Muslims among those who drafted the Constitution and vigorously debated its provisions, or among those who enumerated the Bill of Rights, which guarantees – again in contradiction to the tenets of Islamic law – that there should be no established national religion, and that the freedom of speech should not be infringed?
There were not.
But then Spencer takes it another step: would Islamic influence in our country yield the freedoms we cherish today?
Did Muslims play a role in the great struggle over slavery that defined so much of our contemporary understandings of the nature of this republic and of the rights of the individual within it? They did not. Did the Islamic faith shape the way the United States responded to the titanic challenges of the two World Wars, the Great Depression, or the Cold War? It did not. Did the Islamic faith, with its legal apparatus that institutionalizes discrimination against non-Muslims, shape the civil rights movement in the United States? The Civil Rights Act of 1964 mandated equality of access to public facilities – a hard-won victory that came at a great cost, and one that Muslim groups have tried to roll back in the United States recently. One notable example of such attempts was the alcohol-in-cabs controversy at the Minneapolis-St. Paul international airport, when Muslim cabdrivers began to refuse service to customers who were carrying alcohol, on Islamic religious grounds. The core assumption underlying this initiative – that discrimination on the basis of religion is justified – cut right to the heart of the core principle of the American polity, that “all men are created equal,” that is, that they have a right to equal treatment in law and society.
Surveying the whole tapestry of American history, one would be hard-pressed to find any significant way in which the Islamic faith has shaped the United States in terms of its governing principles and the nature of American society. Meanwhile, there are numerous ways in which, if there had been a significant Muslim presence in the country at the time, some of the most cherished and important principles of American society and law may have met fierce resistance, and may never have seen the light of day.
So what’s the President talking about? Maybe it’s because he is a radical leftist. I mean, I’m trying to be understanding here. Radical leftists hate America and it’s Christian heritage – so the “change” thing. But it doesn’t necessarily explain his words and actions when it comes to Islam.
So, Mr. President, we leave it up to you: please tell us – why the bow, and what country are you talking about?
Mr. President – you can stop bowing now!
To keep up with the President’s tour – check out Obama-rama in Europe! The President who keeps on giving for daily updates.
More Articles of interest:
Pirates seize U.S.-owned, Italy flagged tugboat By Doug Powers
Barack Obama: Refi pitchman By Michelle Malkin
Paglia: Obama’s floundering – Hot Air
Obama’s shamnesty distraction By Michelle Malkin
In the beginning…Eden? – The Anchoress
Obama’s pirate problem By Michelle Malkin
Who’s using the military as a “global propaganda machine” now, AP? By Michelle Malkin
Iranians charge Saberi with espionage – Hot Air
Does God Exist? Hitchens vs. Craig – by Doug TenNapel
Musing with Benedict XVI – The Anchoress
Filed under: Barack Obama, Politics | Tagged: "the bow", Barack Obama, Camille Paglia, islam, King Abdullah, Obamaworld, Turkish Parliament
You neglect to report here that our entire numerical and mathematical system is based on the Arabic numbers system. Also you forget to mention that Checks, Banks and most currency methods were developed by Arabs. Also, during both world wars, most of the Arab world was being used like pawns in some ridiculous game of chess that the European powers oversaw. In giving out land to the Jews who escaped Hitler, the Europeans essentially created the seeds of the “War on Terror.” If a foreign power mandated that I leave my home and sell it to a foreign or local Jew because of some foreign war, I would pick up arms and fight. Just as many “extremists” would do. Look at who would label YOU an extremist if you tried to defend your homeland.
Hey Nicholas!
This blog is in no way challenging Islamic contributions in world history. The issue is Obama’s statement regarding Islam and the formation of America. In other words, the concept of freedom which includes free speech and religious expression which is absent in traditional Islamic societies. The concept of free markets are also a product of the Christian West.
Islam did have a remarkable effect on the development of the United State’s foreign policy. After all, it was Islamic pirates’ depredations and demands for ransom that resulted in the Marines landing in Tripoli and beating the snot out of the local goons. “Millions for defense; not one penny for tribute.” Sound familiar? Other than that, though, I’m at a loss.
ECS
Where did you get the idea that non-Jews were forced to leave upon Israel’s creation? It’s the Jews who can’t live in arab countries, not the other way around.
I continue to believe there is really nothing sinister in the bow or his statements on Muslims shaping the US. He is a politician,he will say anything that sounds good to the group he is talking to. He is trying to be the anti Bush,instead of talking tough and carrying a big stick,Obama is speaking small and bending over in hopes our enemies will love us. I believe we have a stone cold moron as President. He is a product of affirmative action. His gift to British PM and Queen are beyond low class and tacky,they were downright idiotic. He appears to have little or no knowledge of US history or geography,World history,and is clueless on basic economics.
Just because someone graduates from Harvard,even if he is not aided by affirmative action,it doesnt mean he is qualified to be President or a CEO. No one would hire this guy out of Harvard so he became a community organizer. The only way to describe this occupation is its a combination of a peace corp worker and corrupt Chicago politics. Your job is to facilitate the transfer of one groups money to another,in hopes the latter will vote for you. If that doesnt work you bribe them with smokes or free liquor. This is the background of the new leader of the formerly free world. He has never managed,never led, never crafted legislation,rarely showed up at work in the senateO,which for the record is not a real job,,and spent 20 years at the knee of a racist hatemonger he has called the greatest influence in his life.
salam!!/hi!!
as for me bow to someone to show some respect won’t hurt unless to the somebody that thinked he’s the only one who should been respected, doesn’t care about the other people feeling..if u in japan,bowing is nothing just like shaking hand..so what’s the problem then?! is it because he’s the president of the united states..how about if the king Abdullah himself bowing to Obama first?!
Americans won freedom from a King through hard work, determination, and death. Never in our 200 year history has a president bowed to one.
[...] President Obama: how has Islam shaped the United States? « Jim Blazsik [...]
The problem here is you’re assuming ‘my own country’ is referring to the U.S. The Obama nation is a fantasy amusement park, where we all ride around on bicycles to collect our weekly stipends, bring peace unto the world and pay for it all with money earned by someone else.
[...] President Obama: How Has Islam shaped the United States? [...]
Islam has done nothing for the United States, at least not in a positive sense. I’m speaking about Islam as some sort of movement or monolithic group. If you compare the work of Christians or Jews (again, groups, e.g Synagogues, Churches, communities) in the United States, the absence of any islamic contribution here would be impossible to ignore.
There certainly have been Muslim people who have done positive things, been productive members of American society, but those tend to be small picture things. I don’t see their work having “shaped” the United States in some identifiable way.
No one who saw the interview with George Stephanopolis in which Obama said “my Islamic faith” should be surprised at anything he said or did
over there.
I’m sure every religion has contributed in some way to help America, and I think the President is just trying to reach out to everyone. He said when he was a boy that, if he ever become President, he would want to make everyone happy (found the info on Wikipedia).
Concerning a great contribution of Islam to America, I know of none. Certainly the Arabs have contributed greatly to the West in general, but not every Arab is a Muslim.
Pray for President Obama. Make sacrifices for his conversion, too.