The Daily Show: Chicago, etc.

Ill. Governor Stumped by Hate Crimes Panel
By CHRISTOPHER WILLS, Associated Press Writer Fri Mar 3

[Speaking of tempests in teapots! If I were the poor governor of Illinois, at this point I'd eliminate the entire Commission on Discrimination and Hate Crimes (CDHC) since it obviously has not been very functional and is filled with a highly discriminatory membership consisting of probably the most provincial and warring tribes in the country - especially Chicago -don't ever go there after dark! Each member most likely represents the extremes in his own myopic culture, i.e.: Blacks, Jews, Gays, and certainly a few white supremists tossed in. So now, these agitators get up in arms because a "black Muslim" [Nation of Islam] gains membership! What do they not understand about the words Discrimination and Hate? Duh! (Sorry, trite phrase analyst)

Most of my commentary is posted below and addresses the article, point by point. ...AG]


SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - It started as a routine gubernatorial appointment to a feel-good commission — so routine that the governor says he didn't even know the details.

But the naming of a Nation of Islam official to a commission that fights discrimination has exploded into an election-year furor for Gov. Rod Blagojevich, putting him in the middle of a conflict among blacks, Jews and gays.

Even if Blagojevich makes his way through the racial and religious minefield this issue presents, his claim of ignorance about the appointment could reinforce his image of a detached, uninformed governor.

"No matter what he does, he's going to tick somebody off," Rick Garcia, political director of the gay rights organization Equality Illinois, said Friday. "It's completely a no-win situation."

Four Jewish members of the Governor's Commission on Discrimination and Hate Crimes resigned this week rather than serve alongside an aide to Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan, known for his disparaging remarks about Jews, whites and gays.

The third and fourth resignations came Friday, when Howard Kaplan of the Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago said he could not serve on a commission "that, by implication, accepts divisive and bigoted standards."
[Boy! that is the pot calling the kettle black!..AG]

Democratic state Rep. Lou Lang, who was appointed just a day earlier to fill one of the vacancies, also stepped down.

[Chicken! ...AG]

In dueling news conferences, Jewish and gay lawmakers called for Sister Claudette Marie Muhammad to disavow Farrakhan's comments or step down from the commission, while black lawmakers defended her right to serve.

"I think she has the intellect and also the humanity to do what this commission was put together for," said state Sen. Donne Trotter, a Chicago Democrat.

Blagojevich appointed Muhammad to the commission in August, but she drew no public attention until she invited other commissioners to a Farrakhan speech last month. Some commissioners began complaining of her presence on the panel, and the criticism increased after Farrakhan's speech Sunday included references to "Hollywood Jews" promoting homosexuality and "other filth."

[Louis Farrakhan, hate monger, has been around for years having started his own version of Islam which is certainly not related to middle eastern Islam but is more self-serving and is in reality a black supremist counter to the prolific white supremists in that neck of the woods.

Now, "Hollywood Jews" we're all well aware of, right? They are not Jews like, say, those of the garment or diamond industry of New York. Some, who are mostly dead now, were the moguls of the film industry - and others were entertainers drawn out from the Catskills where the New York garment Jews went on their vacations (I don't think diamond market Jews take vacations).

However, I suspect that most Jews still in Hollywood are stylish converts. In that town a few years ago it was popular to be "Jewish" - one of the crowd - like, for example, Sammy Davis Jr. a member of "the Rat Pack" - and many many others. However, they don't make policy.

I think that Farrakhan was using the term Jew symbolically to fit the ancient Catholic inspired stereotype of Jews being money grubbing greedy people (like the Rothchilds) and thus representative of big business efforts to satisfy the prurient demands of our present society - namely, smut.

It would be more accurate for him to be honest and admit that the large majority of those people are, in fact, Republicans - if not very evangelical! Now, isn't that interesting if you really think about it? ...AG]

The Democratic governor, in a recent interview with The Associated Press, said he did not realize he had appointed a Nation of Islam official until learning about it from news reports.

He nodded vigorously when asked whether his staff should have discussed the appointment and its implications with him, but would say little else about the incident.

But he did say Muhammad should stay on the commission so long as she supports its goals of fighting discrimination.

"I strongly disagree with the things Minister Farrakhan said. They're wrong and hateful and they're harmful," Blagojevich said. "I also oppose guilt by association. Ms. Muhammad didn't say those things."

[Minister Farrakhan has always been hateful - that is how he gets his following! He does represent a lot of very angry blacks! ...AG]

Muhammad did not return messages left for her at the Nation of Islam, where she is Farrakhan's chief of protocol [what protocol? ..AG] and director of community outreach, but she issued a statement promising to support the commission's work "to eradicate hate and discrimination against any group or person."

[No wonder they don't like her! ...AG]

Blagojevich's aides have refused to answer questions about how Muhammad was appointed.

The commission, with 20 to 30 members, was established in 1999 but eventually fell into disuse. Blagojevich appointed a new set of unpaid commissioners last summer. Their mission is to promote tolerance by working with law enforcement, religious leaders, educators and social service agencies. The full commission has met in full only twice since it was reconstituted.
[My recommendation is to disband the whole thing and let them all wallow in their own filth! ...AG]

The biggest political risk to Blagojevich is that the controversy could alienate black leaders who are already grumbling because he won't raise taxes to generate more money for schools and social services. One black state senator, who is also a prominent Chicago minister, has talked about launching a third-party challenge.

[Yeah, and then you'd get a Republican governor who is going to raise taxes? Speak of shooting oneself in the foot!.. AG]

The Rev. Michael Pfleger, the white pastor of a mostly black Chicago church and a friend of Muhammad's, said Blagojevich would generate enormous anger if he removed Muhammad from the commission.

"If you are not willing to stand up in difficult times, don't pretend to be a supporter of black issues, of the black community," Pfleger said. "Now is a test for him."

Meanwhile, Blagojevich is being accused of "appeasement" and cowardice by gubernatorial rival Edwin Eisendrath, who trails badly in the Democratic primary. Republicans are also calling on Blagojevich to remove Muhammad.
[Of course, they're drooling for the backlash!..AG]

People on both sides of the question are shaking their heads over the Blagojevich administration's failure to anticipate the problem. Some likened it to Blagojevich's statement last month that he had no idea "The Daily Show" was a comedy when he sat down for an interview that ended up mocking him.

[Perhaps the governor is too naive for the job in such a degenerate place. But even my omniscience was not aware of The Daily Show which, I find, to be a production of Comedy Central a channel which is seldom funny. Those of us who never watch pap sucking for the masses - including the character building Jerry Springer show - would certainly not be in the know - at small loss, it seems to me. ...AG]

Garcia, the gay rights leader, praised Muhammad and said he wants her to stay on the commission. But he said of the Blagojevich administration: "How they could not see it as a potential problem down the road is mind-boggling to me."

[Maybe he was busy being Governor of the state and not micro managing the slums of Chicago which should be the Mayor's job! ...AG]