When Satire Becomes Reality

One of my favorite websites is The Onion.  Its funny, intelligent, and apparently so well written that I've seen more than a few people take them seriously.  A year or two ago they made a fantastic video in which a Truther and an Al-Qaeda representative duke it out in an interview.  During the interview the AQ representative becomes clearly frustrated with the Truther's insistence that the United States government was behind 9-11, despite all the facts and logic the representative offers to the contrary.  It's so well done that I couldn't help but feel a bit of a connection with him.  Afterall, I've been there, I've dealt with these people before. They're not sane and...well as the AQ representative put it:  Talking to them is like talking to a goat.

Take a couple minutes to watch the video here.  I promise its worth it:



Unfortunately we'll never get to see an Al-Qaeda representative confront an American Truther live on our TV.  Fortunately we DO get to see them confront someone else: The President of Iran.

The terror group al Qaeda has found itself curiously in agreement with the "Great Satan" -- which it calls the U.S. -- in issuing a stern message to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: stop spreading 9/11 conspiracy theories

In the latest issue of the al Qaeda English-language magazine "Inspire", an author appears to take offense to the "ridiculous" theory repeatedly spread by Ahmadinejad that the 9/11 terror attacks were actually carried out by the U.S. government in order to provide a pretext to invade the Middle East.

"The Iranian government has professed on the tongue of its president Ahmadinejad that it does not believe that al Qaeda was behind 9/11 but rather, the U.S. government," an article reads. "So we may ask the question: why would Iran ascribe to such a ridiculous belief that stands in the face of all logic and evidence?"
...
"For them, al Qaeda was a competitor for the hearts and minds of the disenfranchised Muslims around the world," the article says. "Al Qaeda... succeeded in what Iran couldn't. Therefore it was necessary for the Iranians to discredit 9/11 and what better way to do so? Conspiracy theories."

"How would you like it if you spent two months in a mountain cave, sleeping on rocks, planning something really special; only to have someone take the credit away from you?  Say 'Oh no, you don't deserve the credit'."

That's the line I've had in my head all day, and it makes me smile whenever I think of this story.  Unfortunately, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's insanity isn't so funny for the people of Iran who are forced to live under his and Ali Khamenei's rule, and it really shouldn't be funny for Americans either.  It's possible that Ahmadinejad doesn't actually believe that America was involved in 9-11 and is just trying to rile up Islamist support for Iran and give him an excuse to take action in the future if he's so inclined, but he isn't just a Truther, he's also a holocaust denier, and believes that Israel should be "wiped off the face of the earth."  It can be funny or frustrating when you meet someone so insane online or in person, but when that person has power its a problem.  The really nutty ones may even worry you a bit, but whatever damage they can inflict is very limited.  Ahmadinejad doesn't have those same limitations.  Oh, and let's not forget that this maniac is seeking nuclear weapons.

Its funny when satire becomes reality until you realize that the man the joke's on is trying could build nuclear weapons, give them to a terrorist group, and enable the destruction of a nation as well as an act of genocide.

CBC Chairman Shows His True Colors

...as a racist.

Nearing 17 percent, joblessness among blacks is at a three-decade high and almost twice the size of the overall unemployment rate. The black caucus wants the president to do more.

But the group's efforts are freighted with political sensitivities, given Obama's unique role as the first African-American occupant of the White House and the sometimes untethered animosity that his election has triggered.

"If (former President) Bill Clinton had been in the White House and had failed to address this problem, we probably would be marching on the White House," Cleaver said. "There is a less-volatile reaction in the CBC because nobody wants to do anything that would empower the people who hate the president."

Cleaver's argument highlights just how insane the "Racist Tea Party" narrative is.  His criticism mirrors the charges that conservatives and the Tea Party have leveled against Obama for years now; that he is a poor leader with terrible policies and a dangerous ideology.  Yet despite having virtually the same complaints against Obama's policies, Cleaver insists that conservatives simply hate the President because of who he is and not because of his policies.  God forbid liberals be forced to stray from their rabid belief in conservative racism.  In fact, wouldn't this make Cleaver or Obama the Uncle Tom rather than black conservatives?  Obama's policies have done great harm to blacks through persistently high unemployment and foreclosure rates, all while Cleaver and other black leaders refuses to stand against him.  Meanwhile black conservatives have taken a stand against his destructive policies.  Who is actually the race traitor here?

But this is all ignoring the most obvious point here:  Representative Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO), is a racist.  By refusing to treat men equally and instead basing his judgement on skin color, Cleaver most clearly displays the hypocrisy that liberal, black leaders often get away with:  Engaging in racism while you condemn it.  Imagine if a white man refused to protest against a white president, but said that he would protest against a black president if that were the current occupant of the White House.  Such a person would, rightfully, be dismissed as a racist, but if you're black it's treated as walking "a careful but candid line".  What happened to judging people based on the content of their character and not the color of their skin?

Racism is irrational, and so too is Cleaver and the rest of the CBC who enjoy playing the race card for political gain.  It's irrational to accuse your opposition of being racists even as you concede that there are major problems that aren't based on race, and it's irrational to say that the only reason you won't protest the economic policies of a president is because of their skin color.  This irrationality has been on display time and time again, but contrary to what liberals and the mainstream media would have you believe, it hasn't been conservatives who have been putting it on display.  But, hey, you know what else is irrational?  Giving Obama an 84% approval rating while suffering under a 17% unemployment rate.  I doubt a white president would experience such a...forgiving approval rating from blacks.  There's the racism liberals have been looking for.