Sunday, January 23, 2011

HuffPost incites Muslim hatred against the U.S. military --- with zero proof (again)

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The facts documented in this article further validate our contention that HuffPost is the #1 global facilitator of the cyber-jihad, and is going to end up getting U.S. soldiers maimed or killed --- if it hasn't already done so.

If care about our soldiers, and would like to see HuffPost held to account for its actions,
please consider taking the Action Items listed at the end of this article.

Summary: On January 22, HuffPost --- which has repeatedly claimed it is a "nonpartisan" news site --- again defamed and endangered the U.S. military. This time, it did so by writing and giving top-line coverage to a "news" story alleging that a small group of religious zealots in our military have taken over our government, and they, and our soldiers, are on a "crusade" to transform Muslim lands into Christian ones.
HuffPost knew at the time that the lying anti-U.S. military propagandist behind this malicious libel has zero proof to support any of it. Further, the term "crusade" mirrors Al-Qaeda's propaganda verbiage, and is uniquely inflammatory to Muslims. Given the fact that HuffPost is also
the #1 most-read blog on Earth, its publication and top-line promotion of such a "news" story can only serve one purpose: to help incite and justify militant Islamists' attacks on American soldiers. And rather than being an isolated incident, this is part of HuffPost's documented history of smearing and inciting hatred against the U.S. military --- even though its Editor-In-Chief, Arianna Huffington, claims the site's journalistic standards "prohibit inflammatory claims and conspiracy theories."

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HuffPost's front-page headline on the morning of January 22 addressed MSNBC's firing of Keith Olbermann:


When one clicked on that story, they were taken to
this story page (left). Note the teaser (right) at the top, which led to this article:


(Do you think the CEO of American Airlines is aware that it appears as if his firm is supporting HuffPost's promotion of Hersh's lies about the U.S. military? You might contact him and ask.)

When one clicked on that link, they were brought to this page --- containing an original story about Hersh by HuffPost "reporter" Jack Mirkenson, whom it describes as "a graduate of the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism":
Seymour Hersh: Military Branch Being Run By 'Crusaders'
(Do you think the CEO of Gerber Life is aware that it appears as if his firm is supporting HuffPost's promotion of Hersh's lies about the U.S. military? You might contact him and ask.)


Note that the copy of the article clearly shows that Hersh has zero proof --- none --- to support his inflammatory accusation, which HuffPost chose to trumpet in the headline.

Excerpts:
The New Yorker's Seymour Hersh alleged in a speech in Qatar that key branches of the U.S. military are being led by Christian fundamentalist "crusaders" who are determined to "turn mosques into cathedrals."

"What I'm really talking about is how eight or nine neoconservative, radicals if you will, overthrew the American government. Took it over," Hersh said. Hersh also said that Stanley McChrystal, who headed JSOC before his tenure as the top general in Afghanistan, as well as his successor and many other JSOC members, "are all members of, or at least supporters of, Knights of Malta." Blake Hounsell, the reporter for Foreign Policy, speculated that Hersh may have been referring to the Sovereign Order of Malta, a Catholic organization. [...]

The Washington Post asked Hersh about his comments after getting a denial from McChrystal that he was a part of the Knights of Malta.

"I'm comfortable with the idea that there is a great deal of fundamentalism in JSOC," Hersh said. [...]

So what do we
really have here? What is the actual story? To an honest first-year journalism student, the story is
that Hersh made an unfounded, incendiary accusation against the U.S. military and its leadership --- for which he offered zero proof --- on Muslim soil.

But as you're about to see, the real story doesn't even relate to Hersh, as much as it does to HuffPost's actions --- which are a betrayal not only of basic journalistic principles, but of our soldiers, and of America itself. Because the facts are as follow
s:
  • Hersh's use of the word "crusader," in this context, and to this audience, could only be calculated to have only one outcome: to put American soldiers in increase danger, by echoing militant Islamists' justifications for attacking them.
  • Prior to writing this article, HuffPost's editors knew that Hersh is a disreputable anti-U.S. military propagandist, and documented, self-admitted liar. How do we know this? Because aside from what is generally known about him...
  • This is the second time in less than a year that HuffPost wrote and highly publicized an uncritical "news" story centering one of his inflammatory libels against American soldiers --- which he openly admitted he had absolutely zero proof to support.

So what kinds of user comments do you think were incited by this particular article?
Go on over to the story page and see the hate-filled user comments that HuffPost reviewed, approved and decided to publish, in response to its incitement. A sampling:
MrJoyboy 242 Fans Permalink
The "war on terror" is a war between two groups of religious zealots
--k­ind of like the fight between Rodan and Godzilla.

bbbbmer 218 fans Permalink
We are actually living in the 21st century version of Nazi Germany, but someone forgot to tell us...

masha2009 140 fans Permalink
neocons are as scary as any religi0us extr3mists out there. if this is true then the difference is they have superior resources than the t3rrorists­.



HuffPost's trumpeting of the term "crusader" in the context of this article --- without criticism or challenge --- echoes militant Islamists' propaganda, and can only serve to incite and legitimize their targeting of U.S. soldiers

The first thing to know about that headline is that the word "crusaders" was not chosen at random by Hersh --- or HuffPost.

It is an inflammatory code-word that has been routinely used by Al Qaeda, Hamas, Islamic Jihad and other murderous Islamist terror groups for two decades, to describe American soldiers --- and to incite Muslims to attack them. Specifically, from bin Laden on down, they allege that America is leading a "holy war" (or crusade) to transform Muslim nations into Christian ones, akin to the Christian Crusades of the 12th - 17th centuries:
"Do not wait for these traitor governments to free Jerusalem or to stand in the face of the Crusader invasion on Muslim land," for "they are stooges to the Jews and Christians."
-- Al-Qaeda's Inspire magazine, November 2010

"The Arabian Peninsula has never... been stormed by any forces like the crusader armies spreading in it like locusts, eating its riches and wiping out its plantations."
-- World Islamic Front Statement Urging Jihad Against Jews and Crusaders, February 1998

"Bin Laden repeated his characterization of a so-called 'new crusade led by America against the Islamic nations,' and emphasized his belief that an emerging conflict between Islam and the West would be fought 'between the Islamic world and the Americans and their allies'."
"Correspondent Meets With Opposition Leader Bin Ladin," Channel 4 (London) Feb. 20, 1997 (source)

(Additional sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.)
Is it really possible that HuffPost, with its crack team of 53 "editors" under Arianna Huffington's direction, was totally unfamiliar with the use of the term "crusader," as applied to the Muslim world? If you believe that, we have some oceanfront property in Arizona we'd like to sell you... cheap.




This is the second time in less than a year that HuffPost decided to write and prominently position a "news" story based on proof-less, inflammatory libels against the U.S. military by Hersh --- a disreputable, self-admitted liar

Seymour ("Sy") Hersh is a well-known, notorious anti-U.S. military propagandist and self-admitted liar.

Yet this is the second time in less
than a year that HuffPost has given top-line coverage to his libels against the U.S. military. In May 2010 we documented the fact that HuffPost gave uncritical, front-page coverage to an original story it wrote about Hersh's allegation that American soldiers are conducting battlefield executions of Muslims --- whom they know or suspect are not terrorists, as a matter of standard operating procedure, and convenience.

Hersh's proof? Oh, he admitted that he had no proof --- none. Yet HuffPost gave this "news story" top-line coverage anyway --- then went on to review, approve and publish a torrent of user comments containing vile anti-U.S. military hatred that were incited by this article.




The fundamental clash between HuffPost's supposed journalistic principles and practices --- as publicly articulated by Arianna Huffington --- and its long, documented history of publishing incendiary, proof-less smears against U.S. military


How exactly do HuffPost's actions in regards to this matter square with its guiding journalistic principles and practices, as publicly proclaimed by Arianna Huffington, its Editor-In-Chief?
"[At HuffPost] there are guidelines that have to be followed -- and they include a prohibition on... inflammatory claims and conspiracy theories."
- Feb. 1, 2010

“[T]oo many reporters have forgotten that the highest calling of journalists is to ferret out the truth, consequences be damned.”
- July 29, 2008

And in response to concerns that she faces no criticism in the mainstream press when she's caught violating fundamental principles:
“[Arianna Huffington] is offended and bewildered by the suggestion that other news outlets think she's getting a free ride. She sees herself as the future of journalism, not the end of it.”
- March 19, 2009

Furthermore, on January 16,
less than a week ago, and in the wake of the Tucson shootings, Huffington published this appeal to civility, and to avoid engaging in wild-eyed anti-government rhetoric:
"[I]t's time to recognize the obvious: our society is in danger of coming apart at the seams -- from our overheated political rhetoric [...]

"[T]here is a huge difference between passionately disagreeing with your opponents and crudely demonizing them, between considering them as adversaries to be engaged and treating them as enemies to be targeted. [...]




HuffPost's acts in this regard are not isolated incidents --- but rather, are part of its continuing jihad against the U.S. military


Since May 2009, we've repeatedly documented how HuffPost maliciously facilitates and contributes to the global cyber-jihad --- the use of the Internet by radical Islamists and their sympathizers to spread false information and incendiary libels about the U.S. military, Israel and Jews. (Example at right here)

HuffPost typically does this by giving prominent coverage to inflammatory, false allegations against the victims based on biased sources -- then fails to correct them once the truth comes out.


Further, in response to this incitement, it reviews, approves and decides to publish user comments containing hateful insults and even urgings of murder against current and former members of the U.S. military --- and censors and bans other users who attempt to post the truth. See many richly-documented examples in this archive.




ACTION ITEMS: Why what HuffPost is doing is so dangerous --- and how you can help

It would not be terribly surprising if Al-Jazeera, the terrorist-friendly, notorious Islamist propaganda machine engaged in the anti-U.S. military propaganda described in this article.

But for an American-owned and -operated website such as HuffPost to incite this kind of hatred throughout the world against the U.S. military, on demonstrably false grounds, is reprehensible
--- especially given that it is:
  • Read by at least 350,000+ monthly visitors from Muslim-majority nations --- including Iran, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia

It is for this reason that we say
HuffPost is the #1 global facilitator of the cyber-jihad. And it doesn't take a genius to figure out that eventually, HuffPost's malicious acts are going to end up getting American soldiers killed --- if they haven't already.

There are only two things that enable HuffPost to engage in this activity: the silence of "journalists," and its roster of big-dollar advertisers.

YOU
can help to hold her and HuffPost to account by taking the following Action Steps:
(1) Make your voice known to HuffPost's senior management and investors here.

(2) Write or call one or more of HuffPost's top advertisers, to let them know your thoughts on what their ad dollars are enabling.
In particular, you might let the CEOs of American Airlines and Gerber Life Insurance know your thoughts on their ads appearing to support HuffPost's latest jihad against American soldiers --- and the price our soldiers and their loved ones may pay for it:
  • Gerber Life Insurance Company, Wesley Protheroe, President, 914-272-4000 General inquiry form here
(3) Forward the link to this article to others, including journalists, whom you think should be aware of it.

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