Aug 8, 2012 No Comments ›› Pat Dollard
Excerpted from CREEPING SHARIA: An expert on Islam is concerned that some California politicians and city officials are ignoring the facts about sharia law.
A town hall meeting at the Islamic Society of Orange County earlier this year declared there is no conflict between sharia law, the U.S. Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. Several lawmakers and officials in The Golden State — including Democratic U.S. Congresswomen Maxine Waters and Loretta Sanchez; Los Angeles Police Department Deputy Chief Michael Downing; and Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca — urged support for sharia law. In several recently released videos from the event, officials said that sharia is not a threat to the United States.
Joe Carey, founder of Radical Truth, says that the statements made by the officials showed a lack of understanding the true nature of Sharia law.
“Michael Downing made this particular statement — he said, ‘The influence of natural laws described by Cicero are the foundational building blocks of Jewish law, Christian law, and sharia law or Islamic law,’” Carey tells OneNewsNow. “That is just outlandish. Sharia law does not recognize natural law and does not recognize human rights. These statements by our officials are just reprehensible, and they ought to be held to account for them.”
Carey contends it is clear that officials have no knowledge of sharia or Islam, and he is concerned that national security officials hold a “blissful” approach towards sharia law.
While many are ignorant of sharia (Muslims included), it is more likely that Baca – and others like him – are intentionally lying. Watch the ostentatious speech:
Occasional commenter here, Fousesquawk, was at the so-called Town Hall event and blogged on it, Town Hall at Islamic Center of Orange County:
During the presentations, a small notebook and pencils were passed among the audience for questions. It appeared there would be no opportunity for people in the audience to voice their questions. I managed to scribble my own question, which was directed to Imam Siddiqi. It went something like this:
“Dr Siddiqi,
“If you are a true moderate, why did you host the Blind Sheikh, Omar Abdel Rahman, at your mosque in 1992 and interpret his speech about violent jihad? Why did you participate in a demonstration in Washington in October 2000 along with Abdul Alim Musa and Abdurahman Alamoudi?”
Needless to say, that question never made it to the light of day, but one Arab woman was able to stand up and ask a question of the two law enforcement officers on the panel. She asked them as those who had taken an oath to defend the Constitution of the United States, what they would do in the case of a wife-beating by a Muslim man. That caused a lot of grumbling in the audience and some people told her to sit down and be quiet. Before Baca or Downing could answer, an agitated Siddiqi stood up and stated that wife-beating was forbidden by the Koran. The questioner referred to Koran chapter 4 verse 34 (which refers to this issue). The woman also referred to the principle of abrogation. (This means that if there is a contradiction between two passages in the Koran, that which was written later in time abrogates that which was written earlier.) Siddiqi replied that he didn’t want to go into abrogation. At some point, Downing stated that in the case of wife-beating in his jurisdiction, the offender would be arrested. One other written question was taken from the audience, which concerned a National Security measure regarding arrests. Sanchez responded and told the questioner that if contacted, her office would send him or her a copy of the law. There were no other questions taken.
Once Chu concluded her remarks, the meeting adjourned because it was time for prayers.
Subsequently, I was able to chat with Mr. Birotte, Downing, and the aforementioned three LAPD officers. First, I introduced myself to Birotte as a retired DEA agent who had worled in the Central District of California (Los Angeles) for several years. I told him that I strongly agreed with his statements that all Muslim-Americans should not be painted with the same wide brush because of the terrorist and extremist acts of some. I then told him that I did have concerns about this place (the Islamic Center of Orange County) and Imam Siddiqi. I informed him that in 1992, Siddiqi had hosted the Blind Sheikh, Omar Abdel Rahman and had interpreted in real time Abdel Rahman’s speech on violent Jihad. I also told him of Siddiqi’s appearance in Washington DC in October 2000 at an anti-Israel protest, in which other speakers were Abdul Alim Musa and Abdurahman Alamoudi. I offered, if he would give me his card, to send him all the documents regarding Siddiqi. He agreed and gave me his card. Our conversation was very cordial.
Outside, I went over and introduced myself to the three LAPD officers who had accompanied Downing. Actually, I had met one previously at UC Irvine, a young officer who was born to a Muslim family in Pakistan. I repeated the same facts to them. I was met with some degree of skepticism. One officer stated that I should not blame Siddiqi for the statements of others, referring to the Washington appearance, but agreed that the information about the Blind Sheikh was troubling. Another officer asked me what evidence I had for my statements about the Washington appearance. I replied that it was on videotape and I had witnessed and reviewed the statements of Siddiqi, Musa, and Alamoudi. When asked what specifically Siddiqi had said, I replied that he had warned America not to risk the “wrath of God” by continuing to support Israel.
Here are his exact words. (The below videos come from the Investigative Project on Terrorism.)
“Siddiqui: We want our government to stop feeding the Israeli war machinery. We want to awaken the conscience of America. America has to learn that. Because if you remain on the side of injustice, the wrath of God will come. Please! Please all Americans, do you remember that, that Allah is watching everyone. God is watching everyone. If you continue doing injustice, and tolerating injustice, the wrath of God will come.” (Video by Investigative Project on Terrorism- Al Quds Day rally Washington DC, October 28, 2000)
