OPINION:
I don’t support burning the Koran any more than I support someone holding a blowtorch to a Michael Moore fraudumentary. If you don’t want to read the Koran or watch Mr. Moore’s fraudumentaries, don’t.
This beautiful thing we call the First Amendment is the essence of life. Freedom of speech and freedom of religion are things much of the Muslim world knows little about and does not respect, which is similar to an abject lack of basic understanding of tolerance, love and peace.
Facts are facts. Muslims in the Middle East have zero respect for other religions. In the Saudi Arabian city of Mecca, all religions other than Islam are banned. Freedom of speech and freedom of religion are squelched and outlawed in the name of Islam. It appears many in the Muslim world are stuck in year 4.
Christian churches routinely are burned, bombed and destroyed in the Middle East. Christians and people of other faiths are beaten and killed by Muslims with no fear of prosecution from Muslim-controlled courts. Ah, yes, Islam - that religion of peace.
While our legal system is far from perfect, it is vastly superior to the Muslim religious court system, which ignores justice. I assume that makes Allah giddy with joy. Order up more virgins.
America is better than this. We believe diversity of thought and expression makes us stronger and, while religion is important to many Americans, we keep our religious beliefs out of the courtroom. Lady Justice is both blind and religion-neutral, as she should be.
We rejoice in the freedom to speak out against those with whom we disagree. Some people will even go so far as to burn a book or our flag. People have that right in America.
The pastor in Florida created an international firestorm by threatening to burn the Koran on the anniversary of Sept 11, 2001. His threat to burn the Koran garnered the attention of our president, secretary of state and others. President Obama said if the pastor burned the Koran, that would cause “profound” damage.
While our politicians were doing their best to persuade the pastor to not torch the Koran, Muslims were burning our flag, burning effigies of the pastor and shouting, as usual, “Death to America.”
Such bridge-builders.
Obviously, our politicians don’t want to upset the religious sensitivities of Muslims, many of whom viciously hate America. Our political establishment seems to have forgotten the cheering in the streets in the Middle East and Dearborn, Mich., immediately following Sept. 11. Ordinary Americans haven’t forgotten these soulless insensitivities. They are seared into our memories.
The real insult is that Mr. Obama and others spent more time and energy on the Florida pastor than they have condemning Muslims for their numerous condemnable and criminal acts against Christians and people of other faiths living in the Middle East. This religion-inspired Neanderthal behavior is much more disgusting than that of the pastor who wants to burn the Koran or the Christian creeps who show up at the funerals of military heroes with signs that say “God Hates Fags.”
Muslim hate crimes are committed against people for simply practicing their religion of choice. Yet little energy is spent by our leaders to condemn vociferously these barbaric, Holocaust-like atrocities, which Muslims justify as their religious duty. Again, welcome to year 4.
Condemning a pastor who threatened to burn a book while virtually ignoring despicable and violent crimes against fellow human beings is not leadership. It is politically correct, brain-dead and soulless anti-leadership. Pretty much describes the current U.S. government, wouldn’t you say?
The cowardly embrace of political correctness has never been and never will be a tenet of strong leadership. In fact, political correctness is a spineless character flaw that emboldens the enemies of freedom, tolerance and peace.
It would be refreshing to hear someone - anyone - in this administration call a spade a spade and say Muslims are the perpetrators of hate and violence and that their intolerance and brutal behavior is much more harmful to the world than is a guy who threatened to burn the Koran.
That would take guts. That would take leadership, and the lack of leadership is what is really causing “profound” damage around the world.
Ted Nugent is an unstoppable American rock ’n’ roll, sporting and political activist icon. He is author of “Ted, White, and Blue: The Nugent Manifesto” and “God, Guns, & Rock ’N’ Roll” (Regnery Publishing).
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