Cry Me A River
That’s the first thing that crossed my mind when I read this Strib article. Here’s the quote that evoked that reaction:
“Since this incident, not only have I missed my prayers while traveling, but also, if I need to go to the bathroom on the plane I don’t even go because people will think things,” he said. “It’s ridiculous.”
Imam Shahin continues to stick with the story that they were kicked off US Airways Flight 300 for praying. Anyone who has read Richard Miniter’s article knows better:
As the plane boarded, she said, no one refused to fly. The public prayers and Arabic phone call did not trigger any alarms - so much for the p.c. allegations that people were disturbed by Muslim prayers.
In other words, Shahin’s making their prayers the central issue is pure fiction. When Shahin says that he hasn’t prayed while in the airport, he’s implying that airline passengers are bothered by people praying. As the facts in this case tell us, that isn’t the truth. It’s just a way of evoking sympathy. Either way, my reaction is the same: Cry me a river, Mr. Shahin. I’ll base my opinions on the facts, not the sentiments that he’s manufactured.
Let’s also remember that (a) numerous witnesses made official statements to the police and (b) Shahin and others have said that misrepresentations have been made in these statements. Let’s analyze this from both angles.
The witnesses that came forward to sign official statements to the police do so under penalty of law of making false allegations. If credible witnesses stepped forward and contradicted their statements, these ‘witnesses’ can be arrested and convicted, for making false allegations. I don’t know what the penalty is for that but it can’t be good.
Let’s also look at it from the imams’ standpoint. They’ve claimed that misstatements have been made. Fine. Then it’s their responsibility to bring people forward that refute the witnesses’ statements. Thus far, that hasn’t happened. Isn’t it telling that they haven’t found any passengers that refuted the witnesses’ statements? Or would the imams have us believe that they’re telling the truth and that all of the passengers are lying because they’re a collection of ‘Islamophobes’ and bigots? Or would they have us believe that this is all just a huge conspiracy theory by a plane full of bigoted Islamophobes? Good luck selling that theory to thinking people.
Another interesting thing that comes through in the Strib’s article is that the Strib’s reporter, Pamela Miller, got scooped in her own back yard. In fact, Mr. Miniter’s article for Pajamas Media contains more facts and more quotes than does the Strib article. In short, it’s a superior news product. Then again, it isn’t a high hurdle to produce a better news product than the Strib.
Technorati Tags: Flying Imams, CAIR, Islamophobia, Bigotry
Cross-posted at LetFreedomRingBlog