The blame game

Robert Spencer

Norway's Aftenposten is blaming me, Bat Ye'or and Fjordman for Breivik's mass murders -- as if killing a lot of children aids the defense against the global jihad and Islamic supremacism, or has anything remotely to do with anything we have ever advocated.

For that matter, no one has explained or can explain how this guy's supposed anti-jihad views have anything to do with his murdering children. Scenario #1:

1. Islamic preachers and texts preach violence and hate.
2. Islamic jihadists kill people.
3. Media and Islamic spokesmen say that only Islamophobes think #1 is even happening, or if it is, that it has anything to do with #2.

Scenario #2:

1. Freedom fighters preach free speech, freedom of conscience and equality of rights for all people, against Sharia and Islamic supremacism that denies those rights, advocating only legal means of protest and dissent.
2. Some nutcase who allegedly expressed allegiance with the freedom fighters kills people, none of whom are preaching Sharia or Islamic supremacism.
3. Media assumes that #1 caused #2 and blames freedom fighters.

SIOA and SIOE declare our sympathy for the victims and relatives of the victims of the heinous mass murders in Norway. We denounce the attacker and reiterate our dedication to the defense of free societies and opposition to all vigilantism and violence. Attempts to link us to these murders on the basis of alleged postings by the murderer mentioning us are absurd and offensive. Our work is and always has been wholly focused upon defending humane values and freedoms. There is no way that any sane person could possibly conclude that committing mass murder of children would advance the principles for which we stand. And if he was not sane, then any imputation of responsibility to us falters on that basis. Islamic jihadists and supremacists routinely invoke Islamic texts and teachings to justify violence, and thus those teachings are and should be rightly held up to scrutiny; by contrast, our record of support for human rights and the dignity of all human beings is consistent and unbroken. This murderer should be punished to the full extent of the law; any attempts to tar freedom fighters with his actions is deplorable.

"SIOE Group barred suspected Norway killer from forum," from Reuters, July 23 (thanks to Pamela Geller):

(Reuters) - A fringe [sic] European anti-Islamist lobby group said on Saturday the man suspected of Norway's gun and bomb massacre had tried to join their Facebook group on the Internet but had been rejected over his apparent neo-Nazi links.

Anders Gravers, founder of Stop Islamisation of Europe (SIOE), said Anders Behring Breivik had made the application around 18 months ago.

Breivik said in an Internet posting in December 2009 (here) he had had discussions with SIOE, but Gravers said his organisation had no record of this.

"He has never been in contact with us and he has never given us any advice," Gravers told Reuters.

But he said it was possible Breivik had attended one of its demonstrations.

He said an SIOE member in the Faroe Islands had checked Breivik's Facebook "friends" on the social media site when he tried to join and discovered one who used a picture of Danish neo-Nazi leader Jonni Hansen as his profile picture.

"He advised us not to allow this guy to join or be able to post on the Facebook wall (message page)," said SIOE co-founder Stephen Gash.

SOIE, which says it has 30,000 followers on Facebook, was founded by Gravers and Gash in 2007 with the aim of "preventing Islam becoming a dominant political force in Europe."

Gash said the organisation is unpolitical and opposes both Islam and Nazism....