That's an Odd Title

Politico has a poll out by The New American Foundation that found that 39% of Israelis (both Jewish and Muslim) believe that President Obama is a Muslim. Although the number is a bit higher than I would have expected, I didn't find the poll particularly shocking. What I did find surprising was Andrew Sullivan's title to his post linking the poll:

Israelis Or Appalachians?

Andy didn't elaborate so I have no idea what he is inferring. I would love to hear from him how he believes that Israelis and Appalachians compare to each other. I am sure it would make for a fascinating anthropological treatise.

Andrew Sullivan: Jew Hater?

Stacy McCain weighs in on the accusation that Andrew Sullivan is a Jew hater:

I certainly don't think so, and consider it terribly unfortunate that Sullivan has exposed himself to this damaging accusation through his reflexive enthusiasm for all things Obama -- just as he once was denounced as a "neocon" because of his reflexive enthusiasm for all things Bush.

Sullivan got over his unrequited Dubya man-crush, and maybe his current see-no-evil attitude toward Israel's enemies will fade if Sullivan discovers that his new presidential idol also has feet of clay. So while I have called Sullivan a menace to society and advocated his deportation, he's probably not a Holocaust denier or a peddler of blood libel.

My friend Dan Riehl called attention to this accusation against Sullivan, by way of firing a shot at Conor Friedersdorf. I've fired my share of shots at Conor, but I certainly would never accuse him of Jew-hating. The extremely toxic nature of the "anti-Semite" label is such that I am extremely hesitant to apply it.

I've got to tell you, I think Sullivan is just plain nuts. Really, this whole obsession that Sully has with Palin's uterus has driven him off a very short cliff. Beyond that he is just a very nasty little man. And to be honest, I prefer crazy people to be way less predictable. Sullivan is a bandwagon jumper and the Left certainly has it in for Israel and all things Jewish so I would rule out that he has decided that the anti-Semite crowd are his new best friends. It is nothing personal with Sully, he is just desperate to be thought of as an intellectual (in that narrow Lefty sense). Which of course is just further proof of Sully's craziness.

Honoring Dishonor

Rachel Abrams of the Weekly Standard believes, “…of Mr. Kennedy it can most assuredly be said that he has been ‘an agent of change’ in his lifetime—and especially with respect to one Miss Mary Jo Kopechne, for whom he was ‘an agent of change’ in the most essential way. Indeed, he ‘lifted up his fellow citizen’—right off Dike Bridge and into Chappaquiddick’s Poucha Pond. And yes, it really was “an imperfect world” when he left her there to drown, but he successfully ‘improved it’ by running away and not reporting the accident until the next day. And he did, with ‘relentless devotion’, use every means at his disposal (and, being a Kennedy, they were legion), overcome the very ‘great obstacle’ this event might have presented to his political career.”

In reference to Obama many have said that you can learn about a person by the people he chooses to surround himself with. You can also learn alot about Obama by observing who he chooses to honor. Carol at No Sheeples Here has the whole sorry story.

Media Matter's Dishonest Spin

Via Memeorandum

Matt Finklestein writing in Media Matters begins and ends his post with essentially that same thought:

Beginning:

Today marks the second time this month that "hate-oriented" extremists have opened fire in public, which is exactly the kind of tragedy the DHS anticipated.

Ending:

Today marks the second time this month that "hate-oriented" extremists have opened fire in public, which is exactly the kind of tragedy the DHS anticipated.

Will Republicans admit that their partisan "outrage" was misplaced?

There has indeed been two despicable terrorist attacks in the United States. Each was motivated by hate. The first by hate of Jews, Christians, and the United States military. The second by hate of Jews and African Americans. The first occurred on June 1st when a Islamic terrorist shot two soldiers standing in front of a recruiting station. Today the second attack was carried out at The Holocaust Museum by a white supremacist. Finklestein is factually correct in both of his statements.

However, if you follow Finklestein’s link you see that he wasn’t referring to Pvt. Long’s murder at the hands of an extremist, he was referring to the murder of Dr. George Tiller which occurred on May 31st. My point isn’t that Finklestein misspoke when he twice said, “this month.” I am accusing Finklestein of ignoring, thus discounting, Pvt. Long’s murder because a: it doesn’t fit his narrative of “right-wingers gone wild” and b: his ideology doesn’t recognize the death of a US soldier by a Muslim as extremist or murder.

If Finklestein were an honest and honorable man he would have noted that there have been three Americans murdered in separate terrorist attacks in the United States in the last month. Instead, he intentionally Pvt Long’s murder because he couldn’t use this young man’s death for his own agenda. He meant to slander conservatives. He ended up demeaning himself.

Reaction: Legal Insurrection, The Other McCain, Michelle Malkin, Kathy Shaidle, NTC News