Slandering The Prophet by Peter Burrows 4/26/15 elburropete@gmail.com

SLANDER: Verb: 1. Make false and damaging statements about (someone).   Synonyms: defame (someone’s character), blacken someone’s name, tell lies about, speak ill/evil of, sully someone’s reputation, libel, smear, cast aspersions on, spread scandal about, besmirch, tarnish, taint, malign, traduce, vilify, disparage, denigrate –

President Obama is not shy about displaying his ignorance of Islam.  I discussed his appalling assertion that Iran wouldn’t obtain  nuclear weapon because “it would be contrary to their faith” in “Move Over Neville Chamberlain.”  (Libertarian Leanings, 4/6/15.)

He’s made other statements that also boggle the mind, such as: “Here in America, Islam has been woven into the fabric of our country since its founding.”(1)  If a Republican president had been guilty of such historical illiteracy, The New York Times and the rest of the mainstream media would have ridiculed him for months.

Then there’s this whopper: “The future must not belong to those who slander the prophet of Islam.”(2)

I’ve been thinking about how one could slander Muhammad given Muhammad’s well documented history. For instance, after the successful raid on the Jewish village of Khaybar, a village leader refused to reveal where any village treasures were hidden, so Muhammad said to one of his men: Torture him until you extract what he has” so he kindled a fire with flint and steel on his chest until he was nearly dead.”

Muhammad allowed one of his men to chop off the dying man’s head, not as an act of mercy but as revenge for the death of the head chopper’s brother. (3)

Muhammad then proceeded to marry the dead man’s newly made widow. I suppose you could call that an act of compassion. She was probably really ugly.  Right.   (Muhammad had a lot of wives. Allah gave him special permission to have more than the customary four.(4) )

A raid against another Jewish village, Banu Qurayza, ended with the execution of all the male prisoners, apparently by Muhammad himself: “Then he sent for them and struck off their heads — as they were brought out to him in batches.  — There were 600 or 700 in all, though some put the figure as high as 800 or 900.”(5)

You think “Struck off their heads,” was Seventh Century butchery and couldn’t happen today?  If you think that, you’re not paying attention.

The above examples are just two of many that have knowledgeable and decent people fervently hoping the future will not belong to those who PRAISE the prophet of Islam.   Unfortunately, the Koran commands all Muslims to do just that: “You have indeed in the Messenger of Allah a beautiful pattern (of conduct) for any one whose hope is in Allah and the Final Day, and who engages much in the praise of Allah.”(6)

Question: When does ignorance morph into stupidity?  Intoxicated with his moral certitude, the President seems incapable of realizing he is wrong about  Islam. (Or anything else.) How many times must terrorists shout “Allahu Akbar” while they’re killing people before he understands the reality of Islam?

It may never happen. In the meantime, I’ve thought of a few slanderous things to say about Muhammad the Prophet.   Obama might not “get it,“ but I know my readers will.

Muhammad:
-loved the Jews
-opposed slavery
-believed women should have equal rights with men
-taught tolerance toward all religions
-strongly believed in monogamy
-counseled peace with unbelievers, not war
-loved music
-encouraged artistic expressions that glorified Islam
-was humble and modest
-treated prisoners with compassion and mercy
-forgave those who criticized himself or his teachings

Those were off the top of my head. If anybody has any more “slanders,” please email them to me as I plan to expand the list, fully realizing that the future could be at stake.

(1) White House speech during conference on violent extremism. http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2015/02/20/obama-islam-woven-into-the-fabric-of-our-country-since-founding/
(2) Address to the U.N. General Assembly, September 25, 2012.
(3) Ibn Ishaq, The Life of Muhammad,  A. Guillaume translation, Oxford University Press, 1967, pg. 515.
(4) The Qur’an, translated by Abdulla Yusuf Ali, sura 33.50
(5) Ibn Ishaq, ibid pg. 464.
(6) The Qur’an, ibid sura 33.21