"This is our religion. We cannot leave our religion for one man."

Sunday afternoon, white supremacist Wade Michael Page entered a sikh temple outside Milwaukee and opened fire, leaving at least seven people dead, including himself.

Page was a neo-Nazi extremist, involved in a group called End Apathy to spur whites to action and a member of two bands, called "Blue Eyed Devils" and "Definite Hate."  Their lyrics include songs about killing Jews, blacks, gays, and other minorities.

Much of the media focus has been on how Sikhs, practitioners of a monotheistic religion that originated in South Asia, are often confused for conservative (in stupid media parlance: "extremist") Muslims who wear head dresses and have long beards (Sikhs have beards and wear turbans).  In the years following the September 11 attacks, they have been targets for hate crimes.  In February, a Sikh temple was defaced and in late 2010 a Sikh cabdriver beaten.  In both instances, the perpetrators made false allegations of connections to al-Qaeda and militant Islam.

Missing in this conversation: are all Muslims that wear headwear and have long beards "extremists?" No. I know many who are good people, conservative, yes, but would not turn to violence.

Even more disturbing, would the attack have been more acceptable had it been against conservative Mulisms? As if their headwear-beards-beliefs would somewhat excuse Page's attack?

Real headline: US court allows Muslims to use mosque

Via the BBC:

A US judge has ruled that a Muslim congregation has the right to occupy their newly built mosque, overturning a lower court order. 

 But county officials said they could not complete a final inspection to make the building ready for use on Thursday as the month of Ramadan begins. 

 Wednesday's ruling was the latest episode in a two-year legal battle over the Rutherford County mosque. 

 Residents filed a lawsuit against the place of worship in 2010. 

 The opponents said Islam was not a real religion and claimed Muslims wanted to overthrow the US constitution in favour of Islamic law. 

 Their lawsuit was dismissed, but in May this year they won a ruling on a technicality to overturn the completed building's approval. 

 Earlier this month, a local judge barred the county from issuing an occupancy permit for the Islamic Center of Murfreesboro.

McCain defends Clinton aide against Muslim Brotherhood smears by rightwingers

Senator John McCain took to the Senate floor today to defend Secretary Clinton's deputy chief of staff Huma Abedin from accusations by rabid rightwingers of being a fifth column for the Muslim Brotherhood.

"I have every confidence in Huma's loyalty to our country, and everyone else should as well," said McCain.  "All Americans owe Huma a debt of gratitude for her many years of superior public service.  I hope these ugly and unfortunate attacks on her can be immediately brought to an end and put behind us before any further damage is done to a woman, an American, of genuine patriotism and love of country."

Abedin and Clinton

His comments came days after House Republicans, led by Michele Bachmann, requested an investigation into Abedin.  In a letter to the State Inspector General Harold W. Geisel, the Members wrote:

Given that the US government has established in federal court that the Muslim Brotherhood's mission in the United States is "destroying Western civilization from within"--a practice the Muslim Brothers call "civilizational jihad"--we believe that the apparent involvement of those with such ties raises serious security concerns that warrant your urgent attention. 

For example, according to "The Muslim Brotherhood in America: The Enemy Within," a product of the Center for Security Policy, the Department's Deputy Chief of Staff Huma Abedin has three family members--her late father, her mother, and her father--connected to Muslim Brotherhood operatives and/or organizations.  Her position affords her routine access to the Secretary and to policy-making.

"To say that the accusations made in both documents are not substantiated by the evidence they offer is to be overly polite and diplomatic about it," McCain said in direct response to the request for an investigation. "It is far better, and more accurate, to talk straight: These allegations about Huma, and the report from which they are drawn, are nothing less than an unwarranted and unfounded attack on an honorable citizen, a dedicated American, and a loyal public servant."

The Center for Security Policy is a far-right organization led by Frank Gaffney, who alleges the Muslim Brotherhood infiltrated the United States government and is planning a takeover. He cites Abedin as evidence, and accuses her mother, Saleha Abedin, of being a Muslim Sister.  In reality, Saleha is an advocate for women's rights in the Muslim world and the director of the Institute of Minority Affairs at the Global Peace Initiative of Women, an organization that promotes dialogue and cooperation among women of various religions.  

Abedin is a long-serving aide to Clinton, born in Michigan and of Pakistani origin.  Much of the media attention she receives is for her considerable achievements, her sense of style, and her marriage to erstwhile congressman Anthony Weiner who resigned from Congress following a sexy text scandal.

McCain has had a mixed record with such incidents.  He was the target of a racial smears during the 2000 election for his adopted baby.  His campaign during the 2008 election, however, engaged in borderline race-baiting, fed fears among white America of a country under the presidency of a "foreign" Barack Obama, and took a hard right to appease the base.

There was one instance in which he awkwardly tried to clamp down on the racism of some of his supporters.  Two supporters asked questions at a campaign rally--one expressed fear in raising his unborn child in Barack Obama's America, and another from a woman who called the future president an "Arab" who she "couldn't trust."  McCain yanked the mike away from her and defended Obama, calling him a "decent man."