HOOKAH SMOKERS KICK ISLAMOPH0BE'S ASS

 Okay, gang, how about some good news? It seems there is this Connecticut racists by the name of Kevin Morris. The other evening Kevin decided to have a few drinks and go propagate some anti Islamic hate (which, of course is all the rage these days).So Kevin headed down to a local hookah bar. Damn, they must be some of Muslims there, he probably thought. There were several things that went awry with Kevin's plan. First, the hookah place wasn't owned or operated by any Muslims. Second, those hanging out there turned out not to be a bunch of liberal pacifist hookah smoking types. 

The crowd took umbrage at some of the things Kevin had to say and beat the crap out of him.

Then, to top it all off, the local gendarmes came and arrested him.

The following is from the One People's Project.

ISLAMOPHOBE GETS HIS IN CONNECTICUT

This Labor Day Weekend, we at One People's Project would like to remind all neo-Nazis, white supremacists, conservatives and other assorted bigots to drink responsibly. Alas, we kinda sorta forgot to remind you all at the beginning of the weekend, so instead we get to show you what not doing so got a young, drunk Islamophobe named Kevin Morris. He spent some time in the West Haven, CT. hoosegow because he decided to start some racist crap in a local hookah lounge thinking is was owned by Muslims. Of course with all the agitation against mosques and other Islamic establishments being built around the country, coupled with attacks on Muslims and the sites of proposed mosques, this clown must have thought it might be a good idea to spark something in town his own special way. There were a few hiccups with that plan however. One, it wasn't Muslim-owned, two, he was trespassing, three, those inside were a little pissed about such an attempt and their response provided us with what you see in this mugshot - which the West Haven Police provided him with after they busted him for ethnic intimidation. In other words, he got arrested for getting his ass kicked! In the next few weeks you are going to start hearing the whining from the right about mosques being built to peter out because people are not supporting this kind of hatemongering, especially since with the recent acts of violence the Islamophobes are the ones who have been acting more and more terroristic. Mr. Morris might have just put all of that on the fast track!

Talking Points Memo

As we've been reporting, there have been a flurry of incidents around the country in recent weeks in which people have tried to intimidate or attack American Muslims or people they believed to be Muslims. But along with these ugly incidents there have been a backdrop of no less unfortunate cases of people who seemed to want to commit a hate crime but were either too drunk, too stupid or too disorganized to pull it off or even give a really clear idea of what they were trying to do.

Meet Kevin Morris, 31, of West Haven, Connecticut.

Last Thursday Morris swaggered into the Fire & Ice Hookah Lounge on Campbell Avenue in West Haven. Just what happened next isn't entirely clear since there appears to be only one press account of the incident -- and that one limited in detail. But after entering the Lounge, in the words of Amanda Pinto of the New Haven Register, Morris began "shout[ing] profanities and racial epithets at a group of black and Arabic people."

Pinto doesn't say what the epithets were. And it's not entirely clear what the clientele is or what kind of place the Fire & Ice Hookah Lounge is. But one thing's clear: it ain't a mosque. And while Middle East-themed and seemingly patronized by at least some people of Middle Eastern descent, the presence of the belly dancers, "Gina" and "Katie," who perform on Friday evenings, suggests that if it caters to Muslims, it's not for the particularly devout. (Not that there's anything wrong with that. It seems like a fun place. Here are some pictures of recent evenings at the Lounge.)

In any case, Morris comes into the Lounge shouting his epithets, apparently really drunk and at some point tries to grab the bartender by the throat or strangle him or something. But things did not go well for Morris. The folks in the establishment were not interested in that kind of an evening and proceeded to administer Morris a serious beating. As Pinto put it, Morris "was punched in the face by at least one of the people he was shouting at" and when police finally arrived he was "bleeding profusely from the face."

Morris was treated at Yale-New Haven Hospital and charged with 3rd degree intimidation due to bias and 2nd degree breach of peace. He is still in police custody.

SAVE THE EARTH: WHAT WOULD JOHN BROWN DO

I KNOW I'M NOT DOING THE OD RIGHT NOW, BUT I HAD TO SHARE. 


IF HE WERE ALIVE TODAY AND WAS WITNESSING THE KILLING OF THE PLANET BY WHAT WE REFER TO AS CIVILIZATION, WHAT DO YOU THINK CAPT. JOHN BROWN WOULD DO.


ME THINKS, HE WOULD ADVISE MORE THAN ENJOYING THE FLOWERS AND TALKING ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT.  ME THINKS HE WOULD DO MORE THAN WHAT I'M DOING HERE.


ME THINKS HE'D BE OFF AGAIN TO HARPERS FERRY  WITH A BETTER PLAN TO GET WHAT HE WENT THERE FOR IN 1859. 


I DON'T THINK WE CAN WAIT FOR THE SECOND COMING OF OLD JOHN BROWN...

THE FOLLOWING IS FROM THE ONION  www.orionmagazine.org AND WAS WRITTEN BY DERRICK JENSEN.

UPPING THE STAKES

Calling All Fanatics

Protecting nature should be more important than enjoying it

BY DERRICK JENSEN

Published in the July/August 2010 issue of Orion magazine

I’VE ALWAYS kind of hated that quote by Edward Abbey about being a half-hearted fanatic (“Be as I am—a reluctant enthusiast . . . a part-time crusader, a half-hearted fanatic”). Not so much because of the racism and misogyny that characterized some of his work. And not even because of the quote itself. But rather because of how that quote has been too often misused by people who put too much emphasis on the half-hearted, and not nearly enough emphasis on the fanatic.

The fundamental truth of our time is that this culture is killing the planet. We can quibble all we want—and quibble too many do—about whether it is killing the planet or merely causing one of the six or seven greatest mass extinctions in the past several billion years, but no reasonable person can argue that industrial civilization is not grievously injuring life on Earth.

Given that fact, you’d think most people would be doing everything they can to protect life on this planet—the only life, to our knowledge, in the universe. Sadly, you’d be wrong.

I think often of a line by the psychiatrist R. D. Laing, “Few books today are forgivable.” He wrote this, I believe, because we have become so very alienated from our own experience, from who we are, and this alienation is so destructive to others and to ourselves that if a book does not take this alienation as its starting point and work toward rectifying it, we’d all be better off looking at blank pieces of paper. Or better, actually experiencing something (or someone). Or even better, entering, as Martin Buber might have written, into a relationship with something or someone.

I agree with Laing that few books today are forgivable (and the same is true for films, paintings, songs, relationships, lives, and so on), and I agree for the reasons I believe he was giving. But there’s another reason I think few books (films, paintings, songs, relationships, lives, and so on) are forgivable. There’s that little nagging fact that this culture is murdering the planet. Any book (film, painting, song, relationship, life, and so on) that doesn’t begin with this basic understanding—that the culture is murdering the planet (in part because of this alienation; and of course this murder then in turn fuels further alienation)—and doesn’t work toward rectifying it is not forgivable, for an infinitude of reasons, one of which is that without a living planet there can be no books. There can be no paintings, songs, relationships, lives, and so on. There can be nothing.

The conservation biologist Reed Noss has called his field a “combat discipline”: we are in a crisis, and our attitudes and actions need to reflect this. And so I sometimes try to apply the Ed Abbey quote to the work of a firefighter. If you were trapped in a burning building, would you want the firefighters to be reluctant enthusiasts, part-time crusaders, half-hearted fanatics? Should the mother of a very sick child be reluctant or half-hearted in defense of that child?

I’m not saying we don’t need recreation. I’m not saying we don’t need amusement. Hell, I have three mystery novels in my backpack right now. I’m not saying a firefighter doesn’t need to rest—having hauled seven unconscious people out of the burning building, we could hardly blame the firefighter for grabbing a quick drink of water or sometimes taking a day off; and I’m not saying the mother doesn’t need to sleep or take some time away from the stress of caring and advocating for her child. We all need the occasional escape, or even indulgence. But we must be able to pursue those escapes and indulgences with the knowledge that others are rushing into the burning building, that others have taken over the job of advocating for whatever is necessary to heal that child.

And that, frankly, is part of the problem: there aren’t nearly enough of us working anywhere near hard enough to stop this culture from killing the planet. Obviously, or the world would be getting healthier, instead of being desecrated with ever increasing speed. If there were more of us trying to stop this culture from killing the planet, then those who are working themselves to death could afford to take a little time off and not feel as if things would fall apart while they climbed the mountains or ran the rivers.

“It is not enough to fight for the land,” Abbey continued; “it is even more important to enjoy it. While you can. While it is still there.” But this part of the quote might actually bother me more, in part because of its fatalism and in part because we—humans—are not the point. Yes, absolutely we should enjoy and commune with and make love with and touch and be with and absorb and be absorbed by the land. Yes, absolutely we should sit in the sun and feel it warm our bones, and we should listen to the whispering voices of trees, and we should open our ears and our hearts to the voices of frogs. But when the forests are being flattened and the frogs are being extirpated, enjoying them isn’t enough. So long as there’s still something we can do to protect them, shouldn’t protecting them be far more important than enjoying them? Because, once again, we are not the point. The trees, the frogs, do not exist for us. It is our culture that is killing them, and it is up to us to stop it.

Have you ever had anyone you love die or come to grievous harm needlessly, from some unnecessary act of stupidity or violence? I have. And in the aftermath I have never wished I had spent more time enjoying this other, but rather wishing I had acted differently such that I was able to prevent the unnecessary losses.

As my artist and writer friend Stephanie McMillan wrote in her essay “Artists: Raise Your Weapons”: “If we lived in a time of peace and harmony, then creating escapist, serotonin-boosting hits of mild amusement wouldn’t be a crime. If all was well, such art might enhance our happy existence. There’s nothing wrong with pleasure or decorative art. But in times like these, for an artist not to devote her/his talents and energies to creating cultural weapons of resistance is a betrayal of the worst magnitude, a gesture of contempt against life itself. It is unforgivable.”

I would extend her comments beyond art: in times like these, for anyone not to devote her/his talents and energies to defending the planet is a betrayal of the worst magnitude, a gesture of contempt against life itself. It is unforgivable.

The questions I keep coming back to are these: in this time, as countless multitudes of humans and nonhumans suffer for the profits and luxuries of a few, and as species go extinct at rates greater than any in the last scores of millions of years—as large-vertebrate evolution itself is being halted—what does the world need? What does the world need from me?

I want to be very clear: I don’t mean to imply that we shouldn’t love the world or each other (human or nonhuman). Or that we shouldn’t play games or have fun. I’m not saying we shouldn’t rest or go hiking or read good books (andDesert Solitaire is a great book). I’m not even saying I have a problem with Abbey’s quote as such; my main problem with the quote is the many would-be activists who use it as an excuse for inaction.

We are in a crisis, and we need to act as such. We need to rescue people from the burning building. We need everybody’s help.

UNTIL NEXT WEEK

THE OREAD DAILY IS NOT OUT OF ACTION UNTIL SOMETIME NEXT WEEK.  

SCOTT AND CARRIE AND HERE WE GO AGAIN OR WHAT IT IS ABOUT "NO" THE FEDS DON'T UNDERSTAND

Not that it comes as a great shock or anything, but Carrie Feldman has been served with a subpoena by the Feds who want her to testify against her close friend Scott DeMuth at his upcoming trial.


You all remember that Carrie spent several months in jail this winter for refusing to cooperate with the grand jury that ended up indicting Scott.


Scott is scheduled to go on trial on September 13th.  Scott is charged with conspiracy for the ALF raid at the University in Iowa in 2004, Lakeside Ferrets in Minnesota, "and other animal enterprises elsewhere" with "persons known and unknown to the Grand Jury.


On Nov. 14, 2004, four masked individuals broke into Spence Labs and Seashore Hall and caused around $450,000 in damage. The Animal Liberation Front — classified a terrorist organization by the USA — claimed responsibility for the break-in.


Other recent activities by the forces of democracy who hate puppies include:


New AETA 4 DNA warrant

This week, Joseph Buddenberg of the AETA 4 was the target of a warrant for his DNA. A quote from the agent who authored the affidavit:

"I believe probable cause exists that Buddenberg was involved in the February 24, 2008 altercation at the L.H./J.R. residence in Santa Cruz.... The samples from the bullhorn found in Khajavi's vehicle will yield evidence that Buddenberg was involved in force, violence, and threats involving animal enterprises, in violation of 18 U.S.C. 43 & 371"

Read the full affidavit here.

Buddenberg submitted himself to FBI agents this week, who took four swabs of DNA.

While the AETA 4 indictment was recently thrown out, this recent government offensive indicates the case is not yet over. The case , if continued, stands to be a precedent-setting Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act case with implications for all activists.

Rod Coronado sent back to prison

Rod Coronado has been sentenced to four months in prison for a probation violation. A judge found him guilty of adding well-known Earth First! co-founder Mike Rosselle as a friend on Facebook, which the judge found violated his probation conditions. The conditions bar Coronado from associating with anyone involved with Earth First. He was also found to have used a computer which was not approved by the probation department.

Several other people report being contacted by the Feds in regards to the on going "investigation" of animal rights activism.

If you have been conctacted by he FBI, call the National Lawyers Guild Green Scare Hotline at: 1-888-NLG-ECOL.

The following is from Support Scott Demuth!

SCOTT'S RECENT PRE-TRIAL AND CARRIE SUBPOENAED TO TESTIFY

A relatively uneventful day in court on Monday for Scott DeMuth was followed by
an unexpected subpoena for former grand jury resister Carrie Feldman.

During pre-trial hearings for Scott held at the federal courthouse, lawyers
discussed pending motions in need of resolution before trial. There were no
oral arguments or decisions by the court. There will be a suppression hearing
before the trial to determine whether evidence seized in a raid on Scott's
house prior to the 2008 Republican National Convention can be legally used at
the trial. This hearing is scheduled for the morning of Monday, September 13.
Prosecutor Cliff Cronk has indicated that he will appeal the decision of the
courts if they suppress that evidence, likely postponing the trial until that
issue is resolved. For the time being, though, trial is scheduled to begin on
Tuesday, September 14 at 9 am.

Cronk also indicated that he intends to call up to sixty witnesses at trial.
Many of these witnesses could be cut if the defense is willing to stipulate to
various facts of the case. Cronk also said that he expects the trial to take
around three weeks, three times as long as we had been expecting.

Cronk was ordered to file a list of expert witnesses by Wednesday and to
respond to a motion in which the defense argues that he should be barred from
talking about a number of things at the trial, including other ALF actions,
Scott's associations with the RNC Welcoming Committee, and the use of the words
"terrorism" or "terrorist" to describe the actions Scott is being charged with.

Later that evening, the Conspiracy Tour had an event in nearby Rock Island,
Illinois. Two federal agents waited outside the event in plain clothes until
Carrie walked outside to get something from the tour van. When she did, they
handed her a subpoena to testify at the trial. A scanned copy of the subpoena
will be available on http://davenportgrandjury.wordpress.com shortly.

In the weeks before trial, we will be finalizing our support plans for Scott
and Carrie, so stay tuned for more information. And we're inviting all of you
to join us in court if you're able. To find out how to help with support work
in Davenport, email us at scottandcarrie(A)riseup.net. Even if you can't come
to the trial, you can help spread the word and help us raise legal defense
funds in your own community.

CHRISTIAN BIGOT IS JUST FINE AT "GROUND ZERO"

So why is it we aren't hearing more about Pastor Bill Keller's 9/11 Church at Ground Zero.  I mean the Pastor is only a known homophobe, Muslim hater and all around bigot.  I mean he'll be preaching hate two blocks from the famous ground zero and seems like that's a-ok with all those folks worried about the sensitivities of those connected to the sacred ground.  How come?


Pastor Bill Keller of Florida says he will begin preaching Sunday at the Marriott at 85 West Street (see proximity to ground zero here). A weekly service is planned at the hotel until the $8 million 9/11 Christian Center finds a permanent space.

At the Marriott?


Hello Marriott, what the hell are you doing?  Hello, forget sacred ground, you rent space to hate mongers.  Isn't that nice to know.


I hate to send you there, but you really need to check out the website of Christian preacher and his flock.  If you have the stomach, click here.


If those who attacked the Twin Towers supposedly represent all Islam, the Pastor Bill represents all Christianity.


The following is from Salon.


BIGOT STARTS GROUND ZERO CHURCH: WHERE'S THE OUTRAGE?

A pastor who hates Muslims, Mormons and gays will start preaching Sunday. Will mosque opponents speak out?

BY JUSTIN ELLIOTT

AP

Bill Keller

A bigoted pastor who has assailed gays and Muslims is launching the "9-11 Christian Center at Ground Zero" a mere two blocks from the World Trade Center site this Sunday, but so far the project hasn't drawn a peep of protest from those who are outraged by the "ground zero mosque."

Pastor Bill Keller of Florida said today he will begin preaching Sunday at the Marriott at 85 West Street (see proximity to ground zero here). A weekly service is planned at the hotel until the $8 million 9/11 Christian Center finds a permanent space. (Fundraising is going well, Keller told Salon today.)

To get a sense of where Keller is coming from, consider his project's website, which calls Islam a religion of "hate and death" whose adherents will go to hell. It also says: "Islam is a wonderful religion... for PEDOPHILES!"

Keller is the same pastor who hosted a birther infomercial that encouraged viewers to send him and a partner donations to advance the birther cause. His Internet ministry explicitlycalls President Obama the new Hitler. He calls homosexuality a perversion. And in 2008, he targeted presidential contender Mitt Romney for being Mormon with a campaign called "voting for Satan."

In short, if critics of the Park51 Islamic community center, which is explicitly welcoming of all faiths, truly believe that there is a "zone of solemnity" around ground zero (as Gov. Pat Quinn put it), they should be horrified at Keller's 9/11 Christian Center.

Ditto for those who believe that religious leaders should not build "deliberately provocative" projects around ground zero, as another mosque opponent put it.

(An enterprising reporter could no doubt find some Sept. 11 families who are offended by Keller's project, just as an enterprising reporter did in the beginning of the Park51 controversy.)

And if there was ever a case of insensitivity to Sept. 11 -- another frequent argument of the anti-mosque crowd -- consider the fact that Keller has a history of seeking to profit from his various projects (one, called Gold for Souls, involved telling people to simply mail him their gold and jewelry). The 9-11 Christian Center appears to be no different. The project'swebsite features a prominent link telling viewers to "Earn $$$ - Click Here!" It goes to aletter from Keller offering people a 10 percent referral cut on donations from their friends to the 9/11 Christian Center. 

To be perfectly clear, Keller should be permitted to build anything he wants as long as it's legal.

But the only logic by which Keller's project would not be horrifying to those who oppose Park51 is if they believe all Muslims, including the progressive Muslim Americans behind Park51, should be treated as suspicious or even in the same category as the Sept. 11 terrorists. If mosque opponents' concerns are truly about sensitivity to the neighborhood around ground zero -- and not about Muslims -- we'll hear them denounce Keller loudly in the coming days.

• Justin Elliott is a Salon reporter. Reach him by email at jelliott@salon.com and follow him on Twitter @ElliottJustin More Justin Elliott