Question of the Moment: Why do Progressive Pundits think that it is irresponsible to suggest that Islamic extremism might have something to do with Islamic extremists....

...but don't have a problem with associating a nutjob listening to orders from Jupiter's atmosphere with Conservatives?

In the wake of the Tuscon shooting of Arizona Congresswomen, plus the murder of a 9 year old child, and others, including a Federal judge, Progressives and others have been spinning some irresponsible theories.

According to Andrew Klavan:

But while little useful can be said about the murders themselves, the rush to narrative of our dishonest and increasingly desperate leftist media does have to be addressed. The Left—which has been unable to discover any common feature uniting acts of Islamist violence worldwide—nonetheless instantly noticed a bridge between the Tucson shooting and its own political opponents. The Chicago Sun-Times ran a slavering editorial blaming “the right.” MSNBC’s Keith Olbermann and the Washington Post’s Eugene Robinson suggested that the killings were inspired by right-wing rhetoric. Politico’s Roger Simon did the same.


But the New York Times was perhaps the worst offender. On its front page, and in its patented smarmily suggestive style, it also implied that Loughner was somehow set off by conservative rhetoric and the Tea Party. “The original health care legislation stirred strong feelings that flared at angry town hall meetings held by many Democratic lawmakers during the summer of 2009,” said the Times, stroking its figurative chin over possible motives for the atrocity. “And there has been broader anger and suspicion rising about the government, its finances and its goals, with the discourse partially fueled by talk shows and Web sites. Tea Party activists also condemned the shooting.”

The Times’s Paul Krugman—who once encouraged readers to hang pro-war Democratic senator Joseph Lieberman in effigy—chimed in on his blog, deploring right-wing political rhetoric and linking a Sarah Palin–backed political ad to the murders. The Palin ad depicted rifle crosshairs on several lawmakers’ names, including Gifford’s, indicating that they were targeted to be voted out of office. (Prominent left-winger Markos Moulitsas of the Daily Kos website did much the same thing, putting a bull’s-eye on Gifford because her views were too moderate for him.)

The problem - aside from the the fact that it is utter baloney - is that this argument lets us stroll down memory lane by remembering great moments in Progressive hate, complete with video and illustration.

George Will summarizes:

Three days before Tucson, Howard Dean explained that the Tea Party movement is "the last gasp of the generation that has trouble with diversity." Rising to the challenge of lowering his reputation and the tone of public discourse, Dean smeared Tea Partyers as racists: They oppose Obama's agenda, Obama is African American, ergo . . .


Let us hope that Dean is the last gasp of the generation of liberals whose default position in any argument is to indict opponents as racists. This McCarthyism of the left - devoid of intellectual content, unsupported by data - is a mental tic, not an idea but a tactic for avoiding engagement with ideas. It expresses limitless contempt for the American people, who have reciprocated by reducing liberalism to its current characteristics of electoral weakness and bad sociology.

Religion of Peace Update.

Alternative title, "This is absolutely nuts."

Wintery Knight posts an entry on how 500 Muslim clerics have endorsed the murder of the Pakistani Governor who dared to oppose blasphemy laws.

And, in a scene reminiscent of Weimar judges apologizing to Hitler for having to give him a lenient sentence for his failed attempt to overthrow the government, the killer - who was the governor's bodyguard - was showered with roses when he made his court appearance:

The increasing radicalization of Pakistani society was laid bare Wednesday when the nation's mainstream religious organizations applauded the murder of provincial governor Salman Taseer earlier this week, while his killer was showered with rose petals as he appeared in court.


Taseer, 66, the governor of Punjab, the country's most heavily populated province, was assassinated Tuesday by one of his police bodyguards after Taseer had campaigned to ease Pakistan's blasphemy law. Religious groups threatened to kill others who questioned the blasphemy statute, which is designed to protect Islam and the Prophet Muhammad from "insult."

In other news, Iran is rounding up Christian leaders.