Mind blowing:

Over at Slate, there is an interesting article by Timothy Noah, Coulterized Conservatives, which looks at the trend towards greater stridency (and illogic and flat out lying) taking place by conservative commentators. At one point, he refers to a new book by Dinesh D'Souza, The Enemy At Home. It's beyond belief. From the Doubleday web page about the book: (emp add)

About this Book

In THE ENEMY AT HOME, bestselling author Dinesh D'Souza makes the startling claim that the 9/11 attacks and other terrorist acts around the world can be directly traced to the ideas and attitudes perpetrated by America's cultural left.

D'Souza shows that liberals - people like Hillary Clinton, Ted Kennedy, Barney Frank, Bill Moyers, and Michael Moore'are responsible for fostering a culture that angers and repulses not just Muslim countries but also traditional and religious societies around the world. Their outspoken opposition to American foreign policy - including the way the Bush administration is conducting the war on terror - contributes to the growing hostility, encouraging people both at home and abroad to blame America for the problems of the world. He argues that it is not our exercise of freedom that enrages our enemies, but our abuse of that freedom - from the sexual liberty of women to the support of gay marriage, birth control, and no-fault divorce, to the aggressive exportation of our vulgar, licentious popular culture.

The cultural wars at home and the global war on terror are usually viewed as separate problems. In this groundbreaking book, D'Souza shows that they are one and the same. It is only by curtailing the left's attacks on religion, family, and traditional values that we can persuade moderate Muslims and others around the world to cooperate with us and begin to shun the extremists in their own countries.

Talk about a strained argument. D'Souza looks for something conservative Muslims don't like, and then claims that is the reason for the terrorist attacks. Not U.S. bases in Saudi Arabia. Not support for Israel or Arab dictators in the region. No. It's all that freedom, which D'Souza blames on Democrats (and which Bush talks endlessly about, so he should be charged as well). But if that's the case, where are D'Souza's attacks on Versace or the New York Post's endless coverage of fashion weeks?

This is delusional, if you assume that D'Souza really believes this stuff. On the other hand, it could be that D'Souza is nothing more than a polemicist who will stop at nothing to slime the opposition.


posted by Quiddity at 9/06/2006 06:28:00 PM