Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa), Saturday on an Iowa radio station: "If he [Obama] is elected president and the radical Islamists, the Al Qaida and radical Islamists and their supporters will be dancing in the streets, in greater numbers than they did on September 11. Because they will declare victory in this war on terror."Rep. Jesse Jackson, Jr. (D-Ill), Sunday on CNN's Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer: "To suggest that somehow Barack Obama's election to the presidency of the United States would be celebrated in the Arab world or in the Islamic world as a moment of jubilation is fearmongering at its worst, and it's just horrible."
As bad as King's statement was, Jackson's is actually worse.
Many have claimed that the way out of this war is to "win hearts and minds."
However, this "debate" would indicate that what's really going on at the twin polls of the establishment is how not to win hearts and minds. It's now a scourge to have "the Arab world" or "the Islamic world" "celebrate" a given candidate. So it might be a badge of honor to piss off Arabs and Muslims. Great -- I'd thought that was the problem.
Jackson's view is a prescription for perpetual war.
I happen to think that any jubilation regarding Obama is misplaced -- and it might lead to false hope and global misunderstandings about the course of the conflicts -- but let's put that aside for the time being.
It is not "fearmongering" if Arabs or Muslims want a particular candidate. We're supposed to want a non-military end to the wars the U.S. is in. Muslim or Arab support would be a sign of hope that the non-stop war in Iraq and elsewhere might be over. That's supposed to be a good thing. Right?
Jackson stated King's comments are "Reckless, irresponsible, certainly divisive. ... And quite frankly, I think he owes the senator [Obama] an apology."
But it is Jackson who owes an apology.
He owes an apology to the over one billion people in the world who are Arab and/or Muslim. They deserve to have an opinion about the U.S. election without being shunned; quite the contrary, it should be welcomed.
Jackson also owes an apology to anyone in the U.S. -- no matter their religion or ethnicity -- who wants the perpetual war to end. By his logic, we want to be at constant war to the death.
The so-called neo-conservatives talk of the opinions of Arab and Muslim countries. Of course, they fabricate things, like claiming that the U.S. military will be greeted with flowers and sweets by Iraqis following the invasion -- but still, they seem cognizant of the notion that Arabs and Muslims have thoughts that should matter.
Judging by his words, so-called liberals like Jackson apparently do not -- though perhaps Jackson was prostrating himself before Late Edition's host, the pro-Israeli Wolf Blitzer.
No matter his motives, Jackson needs to apologize.
[originally published at husseini.org on March 10, 2008]