Posted on 11/04/2005 5:55:17 AM PST by SJackson
"State should be there to represent American interests, period."
Encouraging Iraqis to feel good about America is in America's interests. That's all she was doing.
Oh, my God. Let Condi Rice say this to Nicholas Berg's parents, or Daniel Pearl's widow. Islam, the ROP. Gag me with a spoon.
Of course, Condi might have been indulging in sarcasm, but probably not.
Moderate Muslims are unicorns.
bttt
She mentions Katrina.
The earthquake in Pakistan.
Rosa Parks.
The rights of Muslims throughout the world to practice their religion, ironically to an audience which included diplomats from states which deny that right to Christians and Jews. That might be irrelevant had she not spent 20% of her remarks commenting on America’s history of denying basic human rights to blacks. IMO that would have made for a perfect tie in.
While I presume there were Iraqis in the audience, how you conclude the speech was about Iraq is beyond me.
I linked her speech in 46. A reasonable response by a Muslim diplomat to your question would be that blacks were lynched in America within our lifetime. Finish cleaning your own house first.
I've said this already so I'll keep it short:
We're trying to build a democracy in a Muslim country with a vicious, violent minority that wants us to fail. Having our politicians talk positively about Islam can only help us succeed. Talking negatively about it will help us fail.
She may not have mentioned Iraq - but Iraqis and Muslims across the ME are, obviously, an intended audience for these kind of remarks.
It ain't rocket science. And I'm very glad you're not Secretary of State.
Enough already.
Muslim Life in America, encouraging immigration. It doesn't seem to me we need to encourage immigration, plenty of people want to come here as it is. That aside, I suppose the site would be OK if there was a Christian Life in America site. Jewish Life in America? Hispanic Life in America, Hindu Life in America, Athiest Life in America, Voodoo Life in America, I can't find any of those.
76% of US Jews voted for the anti-Israel prez candidate. A handful of conservative Jews, with the evangelicals, cannot hope to stem this shift against Israel.
The tide is turning against Israel. We badly needs those liberal US Jews if US support for Israel is to continue. -
See where we differ. I would prefer SJackson as SOS.
You may be glad Rice has the job and attribute all sort of brilliance and good motives to her but I will bet you that when she leaves office Iraq is not a Democracy in a form Americans recognize- no matter how many dinners and praise she heaps on Islamists.
Whether Kerry would have been anti-Israel in deeds we will never know.
That this Administration is de facto anti-Israel is a certainty.
Me too. I'll provide what is, imo, a better speech, one that doesn't doesn't pander, presents America in positive terms, and, horrors, acknowledges terrorism. I doubt Gen. Powell offended anyone, nor did he harm our efforts overseas.
Secretary Colin L. Powell Benjamin Franklin Room Washington, DC November 18, 2002
Good evening, ladies and gentlemen. Ramadan Kareem. I would like to welcome you to the State Department and thank you for sharing your blessed Ramadan Iftaar with us this evening.
From Muslims here tonight, especially in the conversations we have been having at the table, and from Muslims throughout the world that I have been privileged to meet, I have learned to respect Ramadan as an intensely spiritual time, a month of worship, a month of contemplation and self-renewal for Muslims everywhere.
In these days, when our world, our nation, our communities, and we ourselves face great challenges, it is important to tap into the inner strength that comes from deep faith.
This is also a time to look outward and reaffirm the bonds of family and the bonds of community that tie us together and make us strong.
We are blessed to live in a nation that offers each of us the freedom to live our lives, raise our children, and worship God as we see fit, under the protection of our law.
We are also a people blessed in our diversity. I have been telling audiences lately who ask about American diversity: Just look at any American city. Leave this building and take a five-minute ride in any direction, and you will find Protestant churches of at least 12 different denominations, you will find Catholic churches and Orthodox churches, you will find temples, you will find synagogues, all coexisting within one city, one community, all worshiping a God in places where people go to worship a God.
We are unique. America is a nation of nations, whose citizens hail from every land and observe every religion.
America is a nation where a Christian Secretary of State, the son of Jamaican immigrants, can host an Iftaar for Muslim Americans who trace their ancestry back to South Asia, East Asia, Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, and every corner of the globe.
In our diversity and our spirituality, our tolerance and our commitment to human dignity, lies our strength and lies our hope for a better future.
Extremism and violence are our greatest enemies, our greatest foes. We must not listen to the siren song of the bigots and extremists who cloak themselves in false spirituality in an attempt to divide and to weaken us.
That is our message to the world, a message we know is echoed by many of our Muslim friends across the globe.
At the same time, we seek to deepen our engagement with Muslims on all levels. The exchange of scholars, the flow of commerce, and personal interactions of all types, such as you have with your families and friends and colleagues -- all of these ties strengthen understanding between the United States and Muslim countries around the world.
We are committed here in the Department and in this Administration under President Bush's leadership to ensuring that our programs continue to reach out to Muslims in all walks of life -- educators and political leaders, religious figures and government officials, journalists and business people. We want to increase the size of our programs to bring these individuals to the United States to be with us for a while, to share our lives with us, let them explore how American institutions and organizations tackle the challenges that we share in common.
Indeed, I was mentioning to my guests at the table that we recently hosted over 50 distinguished Arab women political leaders, who visited our country to observe first hand our elections just a couple of weeks ago. And they spread out all across the country and they watched on election eve in a number of communities to see how American democracy all came together to say to the leaders of the country: This is what we, the people, want you, our leaders, to do.
Other groups of community and religious leaders have visited this year from many, many lands, including Central and Southeast Asia, to learn about our country.
We are also committed to building understanding by building hope. From the mountains of Afghanistan to the valleys of Bosnia, from the plains of Africa to the forests of Asia, in the Arab world and around the world, we are on the ground, working with our Muslim partners to expand the circle of peace, the circle of prosperity, the circle of freedom.
Honored guests, one of the most powerful ways to bring diverse people together is by breaking bread across religions -- at an Easter dinner, at a Seder, or at an Iftaar, as we are doing here this evening.
It is said that God listens to the supplication of the fasting person and answers that supplication. So tonight, I wish you wisdom in your supplications, I wish you peace, and I wish you prosperity throughout the coming year.
Ramadan Kareem. Thank you.
Keep in mind that support for Israel diminishes as we write. Whatever administration follows this one, the pressure will be tremendous to abandon Israel. What we need is for liberal Jews to get back on board the pro-Israel train.
Everytime Rice opens her mouth on Middle Eastern affairs she illustrates more and more that we are in serious trouble as Republicans.
For somebody who looked like the best challenge to Hillary, Rice is increasingly appearing as a foreign policy moron.
Unless, of course, she is merely speaking for Bush II, who has demonstrated a peculiar myopia when it comes to Mexican invasions and the Religion of Peace.
But maybe she is hoping that by repaeting this kind of garbage, the Muslims themselves might come to believe it.
Good luck.
Rice: This weekend, I returned home to Birmingha, in which rights and freedom were denied to people of my color.. was a place in which it was very clear that we had not come very far from the time when the Founding Fathers said, "We the people," and didn't mean me. America supports the democratic aspirations of all people, not because we think ourselves perfect; to the contrary, it is precisely because we are imperfect, with a long history of failures and false starts, that we cherish democracy and support others who embrace its challenges. …So, of all nations, America has no cause for false pride and we have every reason for humility.
Powell: We are blessed to live in a nation that offers each of us the freedom to live our lives, raise our children, and worship God as we see fit, under the protection of our law. We are also a people blessed in our diversity …We are unique. America is a nation of nations, whose citizens hail from every land and observe every religion…America is a nation where a Christian Secretary of State, the son of Jamaican immigrants, can host an Iftaar for Muslim Americans who trace their ancestry back to South Asia, East Asia, Africa, Europe, the Middle East, Latin America, and every corner of the globe… Extremism and violence are our greatest enemies, our greatest foes. We must not listen to the siren song of the bigots and extremists who cloak themselves in false spirituality in an attempt to divide and to weaken us.
The Republican base doesn't want to abandon Israel. What we need is a Republican President who would spit at the thought of holding hands with the Saudis.
Rice has sunk so low as to make Powell look good. We are so screwed.
Then why are 76% of US Jews Democrats? This is no longer just a point of frustration--we are reaching a point of no return.
Gripe at Condi, OK by me. But I wish there was a winning strategy for getting US Jews to care about Israel.
Do you believe that there is a single Jew out there who cares for Israel- who would vote based on Israel only- that should come over to the Republican side considering the last two Republican Presidents? Both named Bush coincidentally.
I became a Republican when Democrats were seen as much more friendly towards Israel then Republicans and my judgement was based solely on domestic issues.
The record of the Republican Executive branch -Reagan excepted, and Nixon during the Yom Kippur war only- is not something that would draw in Jews. The Republican grass roots is much more friendly towards Israel then the Democrat base but that is ignored by the White House.
Now I predict that if Gulianni is the Republican nominee he will get 65% plus of the Jewish vote. Carry states the Democrats must win, and be elected easily.
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