On First Amendment Prudence?

The "Draw Mohammed" event in Garland, Texas has provoked some mixed reactions in the media. Pamela Geller, the proprietor of Atlas Shrugged and co-founder of the American Freedom Defense Initiative, believes that speaking out against radical Islam through an event in Garland, Texas is properly exercising her Freedom of Speech.

Greta Van Susteran went "Off the Record" condemned Pamela Geller and the Draw Mohammed event as not being a prudent application of her First Amendment rights.



Some self censorship critics, point to Constitutional limits of Freedom of Speech.  Chris Cuomo got on his high horse regarding hate speech and kept pointing to the 1942 Chaplinsky v. New Hampshire Supreme Court decision about "fighting words".

But if one relies on the Constitution as being a "living document", one must read further high court cases.  to understand that "fighting words" limitations essentially now must be provocative personal epithets. For CNN commentators preening about their juris doctor degree, check Cohen v. California 403 U.S. 15 (1971) [the "Fuck the Draft" case] and Snyder v. Philips (2010) 562 USC ___ (2011) [Westboro Baptist Church protesting soldier's funeral],

It is ironic that there are elements in the media, which ought to revel in the First Amendment, that urge those who advocate unpopular opinions to be reticent about expressing their Freedom of Speech.  That's some freedom-- not!

It is ironic that there are elements in the media, which ought to revel in the First Amendment, that urge those who advocate unpopular opinions to be reticent about expressing their Freedom of Speech.  That's some freedom-- not!

Several years ago, after the Gabrielle Giffords shooting, there was an effort for encourage civic civility. Alas, that was a progressive ploy to stifle conservative dissent and was not reciprocated by the left.

The admonitions of today to be prudent when exercising free speech seem to show the inroads of cultural jihad.  One can not express Free Speech which a Muslim might find offensive. This can be considered soft tyranny or de facto sharia.  Should we acquiesce to such sensibilities now, consider how imams like Anjem Choudrey would handle such offensive speech. 

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Duke Ditches Plan to Sound the Friday Call to Prayer Across Campus

Duke University announced that the Muslim Call to Prayer would be broadcast every Friday at 1PM. This was being done to promote religious pluralism for the 700 Muslim students on campus. Imam Adel Zeeb, the Muslim chaplain at Duke explained: "The adhan is the call to prayer that brings Muslims back to their purpose in life, which is to worship God and serves as a reminder to serve our brothers and sisters in humanity." 

 Off-campus, however, reaction to this news was swift and condemnatory.  The Reverend Franklin Graham took to social media to express disapproval of Duke's decision.  Although Muslim students had been meeting in the basement of the Chapel for years, Rev. Franklin felt that amplifying the adan was poisonous pluralism.  Franklin posited that: "You're taking that bell tower, and you're turning it into a Muslim minaret. I think it's a slap at the Christian faith."

The day after the Duke Call To Prayer idea was shared with the world, Duke University backtracked on the decision. Michael Schoenfeld, Duke's Vice President for Public Affairs and Government Relations, stated:

“Duke remains committed to fostering an inclusive, tolerant and welcoming campus for all of its students. However, it was clear that what was conceived as an effort to unify was not having the intended effect.”

It may not have just been Franklin Graham's moral suasion which won the battle for the bell tower. Franklin Graham's initial Facebook post suggested that alumni and donors ought to withhold support until the decision was reversed.

After University officials opted  against amplifying the adan, Rev. Graham posted his support for Duke's decision.

Omid Safi, the director of Duke's Islamic Studies program, disputed the notion that the Call to Prayer was an effort to supplant Christianity on campus.

"Every day from that same Duke chapel, church bells ring, and twice on Sunday. The cross is on the emblem of Duke University. The entire quad, and the entire campus of Duke University is laid out as a cross. And the Christian chapel is the very symbol of Duke University. So the kind of fanatical proclamation that Christianity is being erased from Duke’s campus is frankly a poor indication of the intelligence of that argument."

While it is true that Duke University was founded by Methodists and Quakers, the Blue Devil's campus has long been operating as a secular school.  It is facile reasoning that the church bell rings twice on Sunday at Duke Chapel as it ignores the symbolic importance of the adan.  Duke's Chapel is at the highest ridge on campus and one of the highest points in  Durham County.  Having the Collegiate Gothic Chapel broadcast the prayer Friday afternoon would be interpreted by radicalized religious as establishing the dominance of Islam over those academic ivory towers.

It is reminiscent of the controversy over the 2010 proposed "Cordoba House" at Park 51 near Ground Zero in lower Manhattan.  There was a great effort by Developer Sharif El-Gamal to plant a mosque in the area, even though there was not a large enough community to support it.  Three years after the mosque opened, El-Gamal announced that he aspired to build a three story museum dedicated to Islam near Ground Zero.  

What explains this obsession with establishing iconic Islamic edifices near prominent real estate?  As Robert Spencer speculated about the current Park 51 plans:

“The structure as you describe it would be as grotesque as a three-story museum dedicated to exploring the faith of Shintoism and emperor-worship, and its arts and culture, with a sanctuary for prayer services and community programs, at Pearl Harbor." 

We in the west seem like we are metaphobes who are incapable of appreciating the significance of symbolism or the political impact of Islam.  They fail to consider that Islam is a holistic system which incorporates law, governance as well as spirituality.  

Radicalized Islamists seek to impose sharia law through cultural jihad.  France is grappling with a suspicion the political correctness coupled with Islamic accommodations is creating an Islamicized France. While the majority of North American Muslims seem content to live in a secular society with a pluralistic polity, it is easy to understand why some are chary about allowing accommodations which can be seen as a primus entre pares situation.

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Still Digesting President Obama's Easter Prayer Breakfast Remarks

President Obama's remarks for the 2014 Easter Prayer breakfast ranged from a somber recounting of a deadly attack on a Kansas Jewish Community Center, a summing up of the Christian Easter message, touting the President's meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican and POTUS' playful prayer.

 

Was President Obama's Prayer at the Easter Prayer Breakfast:
	Charming
	Scandalous
	Sounds more anticipatory of an Easter feast
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A Bit About Whether Dr. Dobson Unduly Politicize the National Day of Prayer?

To commemorate the 62nd consecutive year of the National Day of Prayer, there certainly were different approaches.  Unlike his predecessor, President Barack Obama has not hosted an ecumenical service to commemorate the National Day of Prayer, the 44th President does issue proclamations each year.  Mr. Obama's 2014 proclamation paid lip service to the importance of respecting religious liberty, which struck many political observers as ironic considering the manner which the Obama Administration has rolled out the Contraception Mandate portion of Obamacare.

On the other hand, Dr. James Dobson chose to play the prophet who will tell truth to power.  Dr. Dobson was quite clear in labeling Mr. Obama as the "Abortion President".  Dobson detailed how President Obama gave the keynote speech at the 2013 Planned Parenthood convention to brag how an expanded "womens' health services" would be part of Obamacare. Dobson also noted that Planned Parenthood garners $250 million a year for "reproductive health".   

Dobson's group "Family Talk" recently won an injunction to block the Federal government from forcing it to impose the Contraception Mandate (which includes abortifacients).  Dobson tearfully proclaimed: So come and get me if you must, Mr. President.  I will not blow before your wicked regulation."  Dobson urged his audience to fight on as: “We can win. And keep prayer because that’s what really made a difference here.”

Dobson's directness did not settle well with Representative Janice Hahn (D-CA 44th), who wagged her finger at the speaker and said "This is inappropriate" as she walked of the event held in the Canon House Office Building.  Later Rep. Hahn, who co-chairs the weekly Congressional prayer breakfast claimed: "James Dobson hijacked the National Day of Prayer -- this nonpartisan, nonpolitical National Day of Prayer -- to promote his own distorted political agenda."

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Dobson's pointed speech was not partisan in the sense of party politics or advocating specific legislation but he did detail real world challenges to living  a morally inspired life.  

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There are thousands of National Day of Prayer events throughout the United States, but activities in the Federal City tend to dominate the spotlight.  So having issues that are uncomfortable or contentious can threaten the non-political comity of the National Day of Prayer.

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The question is-- Did Dr. Dobson unduly politicize the National Day of Prayer?

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Did Dr. Dobson unduly politicize the National Day of Prayer?
	No since speaking prophetically truth to power about important moral issues is honoring prayer
	No as Dobson did not endorse political candidates or particular legislation
	No but attacking the civic sacrament of abortion made elected officials uncomfortable
	Yes as Dobson spoke about a real moral issue not simply spouting pretty platitudes
	Yes as the National Day of Prayer should bring together believers and not divide them
	Yes because politics and prayer should not be mixed together
	Don't Know
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Sharpton Frames Easter Message Through Obama Crucified and Rising Again

The Reverend Al Sharpton gave an unusual Easter message on the Tom Joyner Show.  Sharpton tried to be ecumenical to reach out to Christians, Jews and atheists with an anti-materialist message to remember the reason for the season.

Sharpton alluded to every man challenges where people feel crucified. Sharpton encouraged folks to rise above their suffering and not become like the disease they fight. Sharpton closed his secular preaching by alluding to an alleged crucifixion of Barack Obama.  The Reverend claimed that he was not comparing Obama to Jesus but for every crucifixion there is a resurrection for those who believe.

So the question is on the orthodoxy of Reverend Al Sharpton's Easter message that to every crucifixion there is a resurrection for those who believe, so rise above your unearned suffering.

Did Rev. Al Sharpton correctly convey the Easter Message?
	Yes
	No
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For those who want to hear more of Reverend Sharpton's preaching, you will not find him in church but on PoliticsNation, 6 PM et on MSNBC.