Ahmed Bedier on Why People Must Never Fear Government

Ahmed Bedier at the Florida Capitol quotes Thomas Jefferson in explaining why THE PEOPLE must never fear Government. Jefferson said "When people fear governments, you have tyranny, and when government fears the people you have liberty"

Florida Muslim Capitol Day brought 250 Floridians to the State Capitol who advocated for education and health care reform. While the majority of the participants were members of a religious minority, they did NOT push for any religious or self-serving issues.

United Voices For America which helped organize the event is dedicated to increasing minority participation in the political process.

PRESIDENT'S PORTRAYAL OF 'THE ENEMY' OFTEN FLAWED

Last night I joined other folks from the Tampa Bay area at the Television Studios of WFLA NBC 8 to watch and react to the President's State of the Union Speech. It was like dejavu since I spent the previous year doing the same thing at the same place.


I remember saying last year that I was concerned about the president's use of loaded labels to describe the enemy. Lat year it was radical Islam. I felt the same way this year about the president's use of "Sunni Extremists" and "Shia Extremists."

Watch other comments by watching the below YouTube clip:




For more on the President's portrayal of "The Enemy" check out the below Wash Post article.

Glenn Kessler, Washington Post, 1/24/07

In his State of the Union address last night, President Bush presented an
arguably misleading and often flawed description of "the enemy" that the United
States faces overseas, lumping together disparate groups with opposing
ideologies to suggest that they have a single-minded focus in attacking the
United States.

Under Bush's rubric, a country such as Iran -- which enjoys diplomatic
representation and billions of dollars in trade with major European countries --
is lumped together with al-Qaeda, the terrorist group responsible for the Sept.
11, 2001, attacks.

"The Shia and Sunni extremists are different faces of the same totalitarian
threat," Bush said, referring to the different branches of the Muslim
religion. Similarly, Bush asserted that Shia Hezbollah, which has won
seats in the Lebanese government, is a terrorist group "second only to al-Qaeda
in the American lives it has taken."

Bush is referring to attacks nearly a quarter-century ago on a U.S. embassy
and a Marine barracks when the United States intervened in Lebanon's civil war
by shelling Hezbollah strongholds. Hezbollah has evolved into primarily an
anti-Israeli militant organization -- it fought a war with Israel last summer --
but the European Union does not list it as a terrorist organization.

At one point, Bush catalogued what he described as advances in the quest
for freedom in the Middle East during 2005 -- such as the departure of Syrian
troops from Lebanon and elections in Iraq. Then, Bush asserted, "a thinking
enemy watched all of these scenes, adjusted their tactics and in 2006 they
struck back."

But his description of the actions of "the enemy" tried to tie together a
series of diplomatic and military setbacks that had virtually no connection to
one another, from an attack on a Sunni mosque in Iraq to the assassination of
Maronite Lebanese political figure.

FL Congress woman Brown-Waite defends Muslim Bashers and says All Terrorists are Muslim

Florida Congress woman Ginny Brown-Waite at her best, calling all Terrorists Muslim

Watch her embarrassing performance on WTVT Fox News:



Text Version courtesy of WTVT:



Last Edited: Thursday, 09 Nov 2006, 10:18 PM EST
Created: Thursday, 09 Nov 2006, 10:18 PM EST

Ginny Brown-Waite is defending a supporter's comments. We've got you covered

BROOKSVILLE - When Governor-elect Charlie Crist heard one of his
supporters call Islam a "hateful and frightening" religion, he kicked
her off his election team.

Governor Bush also condemned Hernando Commissioner Tom Hogan's and
his wife for the remark.

Congresswoman Ginny Brown-Waite didn't respond until after the
election, then she rushed to the couple's defense.

"Ms. Hogan is entitled to her views, and her husband stood by her
side as a good husband should," stated Brown-Waite.

The congresswoman also attacked the Governor and the Governor-elect
for condemning the comment.

"Not every Muslim is a terrorist, but every terrorist is a Muslim
except for Tim McVeigh," offered Brown-Waite.

"What about Eric Rudolph?" FOX 13 asked.

"Well except him too," said Brown-Waite.

"What about the Klan?" we asked.

"They're not doing terrorist activities right now. We're talking
about a group that wants to do away with our way of life. With all
due respect, I don't think there's any comparison," said Brown-Waite.

We can find many non-Muslim terrorists, but Islamic groups say that's
not the point.

"She's actually standing up on the wrong side of the aisle, defending
bigotry and hatred," stated Ahmed Bedier with the Council on American
Islamic Relations.

The Congresswoman says she defends anti-Muslim remarks on grounds of
free speech.

She wrote a scorching three-page defense claiming those who call
Islam 'hateful and frightening' just reflect her community.

"If this does reflect the views of your community, what will you do
to educate the community?" FOX 13 asked.

"I think it's up to the moderate Muslims," Brown-Waite responded