Hoisted on His Own Petard

Seems as if the son of the most infamous mass murderer of this current century is a bit miffed at the way his dad met a bitter end.

Osama Bin Laden's son complained Tuesday that his father was summarily executed, deprived of a fair trial and denied a family burial.

The son, who has previously denounced his father's murderous ways, said President Obama was no better than the notorious terrorist.

"As (I) condemned our father, (I) now condemn the President of the United States for ordering the execution of unarmed men and women," Omar Bin Laden wrote.

Do you smell that? It bares a strong olfactory resemblance to the smug self-righteousness of a man pontificating and throwing punches a tad outside his weight class. His father clearly was unmoved by his proclamations, so I fail to understand why the President of the United States -- or anyone else, for that matter -- would really care what Omar Bin Laden thinks.

That doesn't stop him from going on, of course.

"Not only international law has been blatantly violated, but USA has set a very different example whereby right to have a fair trial, and presumption of innocence until proven guilty by a court of law," Omar Bin Laden wrote in sometimes fractured English.

Osama Bin Laden was not a citizen of the United States, or a member of any organized state or formal army. As such, he was not entitled to any form of rights or presumption of anything in accordance with any form of law -- "international" or American.

He demanded answers in 30 days and said he is putting together a panel of British lawyers.

You will pardon me again if I'm not exactly quaking in my boots at this proclamation. Still, if would be a fitting irony, indeed, if Bin Laden managed to get an international court to declare Barack Obama a war criminal, much like the president's supporters so vehemently declared his predecessor.

Anyway, I've spent more time on this than Omar Bin Laden deserves. Bottom line, he's upset with the treatment of his father? I'm upset that his father killed over 3,000 people in my hometown. By my calculations, he owes me at least 2,999 more outrages before I give a flying fuck.

A Blast From the Past

So, apparently after all of these years, my LiveJournal still exists in all of its pristine, holiday-themed form. Who knew?

Looking back at those salad days of 2004-2005, it's clear that my writing style has...pretty much not evolved at all. Posts are still filled with lots of lengthy, complex-clause-riddled sentences and links to places such as Ace of Spades HQ and the original pre-beta-male AllahPundit. But the TSL that authored those posts was in, some ways, a very different man. My writing is tinged with a fatalistic paranoia and references to my shrink, an indication of how badly I still suffered from heightened anxiety in the years after 9/11. It also often details my preferred escape of the time -- comics. The fantastical stories and mostly happy endings took me back to my childhood, a purely escapist fare to help me forget the sheer terror I felt in each and every waking (and sleeping) moment.

Still, there were good times. The Blog of TSL was where, via syndication, I prodded a certain erstwhile Cranky Conservative to begin his own blogging journey. It was also the first place I ever got linked to -- from Ace -- and also allowed me to make some decent blog friends at the time, such as Hans Brix (whatever happened to that guy?).

As to what's missing, well, its also weird to read it now and see it devoid of comments from a certain all-around blog groupie and best friend the first incarnation of Geek Soap Box would later bring me. And that is, still, the one thing that made this whole writing experience all so worthwhile.

Anyway, I am going to attempt to import some of these posts into Wordpress, so if you see anything weird happening with my RSS feed in the next few days, now you know why.

Your Daily Dose of Park51 Updates and Commentary

In a way, I should thank the planners of the so-called Ground Zero Mosque -- otherwise known as Park51 -- for inspiring and rekindling my writing/blogging bug like nothing has since the 2004 Election. I guess everyone needs his or her own muse, no matter how revolting and life-threatening it may be. Conquering Islamo-terrorists, John Frenchy Kerry, it's all the same!

Look for the Union Label

Via @midlifechick on Twitter comes word that many New York City-based unions and vendors may tell the builders of Park 51 to take a flying leap when RFP time rolls around.



I'm no unionist, for sure, but one cannot imagine without being horrified how many hard-working union members -- construction, police, EMT, nurses, food service, clerical, and more -- were murdered during the attack. It's perfectly understandable -- and 100% well within their consitutional rights -- to refuse to work on this project. And if there are no available workers to build the facility (NY is not a right-to-work state), then it's questionable if Park51 will get built at all. A perfect potential solution, completely legal and free of government intervention.

And how ironic it is, indeed, that the heroic leader of the new Blue Collar Corner's name is...Andrew Sullivan.

Just hope for their sakes that Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi doesn't "investigate their financing" as a result.

Rudy Returns!

No less than 24 hours after my lament that the man was gone for good, Rudy Giuliani returned to the political airwaves today, and hit all of the key take-aways with his usual dose of rational delivery.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Regardless of how he felt on the matter -- and make no mistake, he hit all of the points succinctly and accurately, from legality to sensitivity to a bigger picture -- for a figure so forever entangled with the tragedy of 9/11 to remain silent felt like a gaping void in the debate. Glad to see him again, especially in a fashion which allowed him to rhetorically eviscerate the vapid Ken doll Matt Lauer.

Even Some Muslims Think This Is a Colossal Disaster

Finally, a handful of voices of reason emerge even on the other side of the debate.

American Muslims who support the proposed mosque and Islamic center near ground zero are facing skeptics within their own faith — those who argue that the project is insensitive to Sept. 11 victims and needlessly provocative at a time when Muslims are pressing for wider acceptance in the U.S.

"For most Americans, 9/11 remains as an open wound, and anything associated with Islam, even for Americans who want to understand Islam — to have an Islamic center with so much publicity is like rubbing salt in open wounds," said Akbar Ahmed, professor of Islamic studies at American University, a former Pakistani ambassador to Britain and author of "Journey Into America, The Challenge of Islam." He said the space should include a synagogue and a church so it will truly be interfaith.

Abdul Cader Asmal, past president of the Islamic Council of New England, an umbrella group for more than 15 Islamic centers, said some opponents of the $100 million, 13-story project are indeed anti-Muslim. But he said many Americans have genuine, understandable questions about Islam and extremism.

In light of those fears, and the opposition of many relatives of 9/11 victims, Asmal said organizers should dramatically scale back the project to just a simple mosque, despite their legal right to construct what they want.

"Winning in the court of law is not going to help improve the image of Muslims nationwide," said Asmal, a Massachusetts physician. "You have to win the hearts and minds of the ordinary American people,"

Of course, winning hearts and minds -- at least, by means other than force -- has never exactly been a strong point in a religion based mostly on conquest. Still, it is very reassuring to see that cooler heads do exist and are willing to take a path less provocative and belligerent. Even if some think the whole thing is, of course, part of a vast Zionist Conspiracy. Maybe there's hope for a Great Islamic Reformation after all. Maybe.

H/t to @dorkelina on Twitter for the article above.

Links:

• "Giuliani: If Dialogue and Sensitivity are the Goals, Don't Build the Mosque on Ground Zero" (Hot Air)
• "What Mosque Supporters Won't Say" (Piece of Work in Progress)
• "Some Muslims Question Mosque Near Ground Zero" (The Leaf Chronicle)
• "Top Muslims Condemn Ground Zero Mosque as 'Zionist Conspiracy'" (Pajamas Media)
• "Pelosi Wants Mosque Dissenters Investigated" (Big Government)
• "Workers Pledging Not to Work on Ground Zero Mosque" (Can I Just Finish My Waffle?)