Muslims-Americans for Obama

Lakhdar Boumediene Starts Anew in France After Years at Guantánamo – NYTimes.com. The United States government has never acknowledged any error in detaining Mr. Boumediene, though a federal judge ordered his release, for lack of evidence, in 2008. The government did not appeal, a Defense Department spokesman noted, though he declined to answer further questions about Mr. Boumediene’s case. A State Department representative declined to discuss the case as well, except to point to a Justice Department statement announcing Mr. Boumediene’s transfer to France, in 2009.

STUDY:  TERRORISM BY MUSLIM-AMERICANS DOWN IN 2010. A new study released today by the Triangle Center on Terrorism and Homeland Security  shows that the number of Muslim-Americans who perpetrated or were arrested for terrorist acts declined sharply in 2010.  The study, “Muslim American Terrorism Since 9/11:  An Accounting,” reports that while 47 Muslim-Americans committed or were arrested for terrorist crimes in 2009, the number dropped to 20 this past year. h/t Faith in Public Life

So what's the difference? It is this. Some expressions of bigotry are permissible in this country and some aren't. One had best keep your anti-black racism to yourself — or pretend it's just about Obama as the Limbaughs and right-wingers do. Same with Jews, where, as the Thomas case demonstrates, expressing disdain for Israel, let alone Jews, can be a career killer. But it's still okay to express open prejudice towards gays and lesbians, Latino immigrants (legal or illegal) and, above all, Muslims and Arabs. [From Jeff Goldberg Defends Marty Peretz — But Not That Bigot, Helen Thomas] islamophobia, anti-Muslim