CAIR demands reprimand of radio hosts who told the truth

In Islamic law, the definition of slander doesn’t involve falsehood. The Shafi’i manual of Islamic law ‘Umdat al-Salik, which is certified by Al-Azhar in Cairo as a reliable guide to Sunni Muslim orthodoxy, defines “slander” as “to mention anything concerning a person that he would dislike.” Nothing is said about whether or not what is said is true -- only that the person would dislike it. And this is based on a statement of Muhammad to the same effect.

The nation's leading Islamic civil rights group today issued a call for San Francisco-based KSFO 560 AM to reprimand two local talk show hosts -- and has asked the station's listeners to contact advertisers -- following a segment that it says "mocked Islam, misstated Muslim beliefs and cast suspicion on political participation by American Muslims.''

The Council on American-Islamic Relations -- known as CAIR -- sent out the letter Thursday after the Chronicle Spin Cycle Political blog this week reported on a morning comedy segment by KSFO 560-AM hosts Brian Sussman and his radio sidekick "Officer Vic."

The pair, during the Monday program, did a comedic segment about Islam and its tenets, and joked that "Islamic finance is about living within your means and helping the needy - unless they're Jews," the blog reported. Additionally, they observed that "the great honorable qualities of that good old time religion: honor killings, female circumcision, not allowing women to drive...Jews are monkeys, pigs.''

Ibrahim Hooper, spokesman for CAIR, told the Chronicle the Washington D.C.-based advocacy organization is asking American Muslims and consumers to contact KSFO officials and advertisers to express their concerns about what he called the "smears" on the Muslim religion.

"We're firm believers in the First Amendment,'' Hooper told the Chronicle. "We're not saying people don't have the right to say what they want...but people who listen to the radio station have no obligation to take their hard-earned dollars and buy the goods and services of advertisers who place their messages on these programs. That's a freedom -- just as free speech is a freedom.''

"We have to challenge these kinds of smears against our faith,'' Hooper said. "It's this kind of rhetoric that can lead to dismination [sic] and violence against ordinary Muslims.''

Hooper also said that the hosts' characterizations of the tenents of Islam were incorrect and offensive. "So-called 'honor killings,' female genital mutilation and not allowing women to drive are not part of Islam,'' he said. "Muslims respect Jews and Christians as 'people of the book' who received earlier revelations from God.''

Honest Ibe is in top form here, but he seems to be a bit forgetful:

Giving charity -- zakat -- to Jews: "It is not permissible to give zakat to a non-Muslim." ('Umdat al-Salik h8.24)

Honor killing: "Retaliation is obligatory against anyone who kills a human being purely intentionally and without right." However, "not subject to retaliation" is "a father or mother (or their fathers or mothers) for killing their offspring, or offspring's offspring." ('Umdat al-Salik o1.1-2.) In other words, someone who kills his child incurs no legal penalty under Islamic law.

Female genital mutilation: "Circumcision is obligatory...for both men and women." ('Umdat al-Salik e4.3)

Women driving: "A woman may not leave the city without her husband or a member of her unmarriageable kin...accompanying her, unless the journey is obligatory, like the hajj. It is unlawful for her to travel otherwise, and unlawful for her husband to allow her to." ('Umdat al-Salik m10.3)

Jews as "monkeys and pigs": "Of the people of Moses there is a section who guide and do justice in the light of truth....But the transgressors among them changed the word from that which had been given them so we sent on them a plague from heaven. For that they repeatedly transgressed....When in their insolence they transgressed (all) prohibitions, We said to them: "Be ye apes, despised and rejected." (Qur'an 7:159, 162, 166 -- see also Qur'an 2:62-65 and 5:59-60).

Apparently Hooper missed these verses in the koran, the terrorist training manual.