An American Expat in Southeast Asia

Obama-Jugend

2008-10-01T04:50:00.002+08:00

There is a reason why Barack Obama's mantra of "change" is so appealing to the youth of America. It's because they are too young to remember.

Never to forgive... Never to forget...

NEVER AGAIN !

Burn Baby Burn

2008-09-25T20:39:00.003+08:00

No Bailout!

You don't PRIVATIZE profits and SOCIALIZE losses.

Obama: Throwing Papua Under the Bus

2008-09-18T07:13:00.003+08:00

In an article entitled "A Forgotten Cause", Peter Tatchell sheds light on the plight of the West Papuans, many of whom are Christians and have suffered under Indonesia's brutal policy of ethnic and religious persecution. The untold story though is how the Obama campaign would sell out the West Papuans in a desperate attempt to protect Obama's presidential bid.

On the 3rd of July 2007, U.S. Congressman Eni Faleomavaega would touch down in Jakarta, Indonesia. A staunch outspoken critic of Jakarta's rule over West Papua, New Guinea and a crusader for West Papua’s right to self-determination, the chairman of the House Subcommittee on Asia, The Pacific and the Global Enviroment, Faleomavaega promised to be a force to be reckoned with.

Having been barred from visiting Papau by the Indonesian government, Faleomavaega would instead settle for a private meeting in Jakarta with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Barnabas Suebu the governor for the Indonesian province of Papau. The Papuan issue though wasn't the only thing on Faleomavaega's mind, being one of Barack Obama's most devoted disciples, Faleomavaega would be seeking the Indonesian government's assistance in supporting Barack Obama's presidential campaign as well as making the requisite pilgrimage to Barack Obama's childhood school.

According to our Indonesian sources, "officials" who accompanied Faleomavaega were interested in acquiring any and all documentation or photographs of a young Barry Soetoro for America's "national archives" and they were offering cash, lots of it. In a show of faith, Barack Obama's childhood school would be one of the very first beneficiaries of this outpouring receiving thousands of dollars to upgrade the school and for the purchase of computer equipment, thanks in part to the benevolence of this visiting junket.

The challenge of course was securing Indonesian goverment records potentially damaging to Barack Obama's candidacy for the US presidency as well as other records pertaining to a young Barry Soetoro and his family wouldn't be so easy to acquire and secure, and for this, the visitors would need the assistance and cooperation of the Indonesian government.

It's not that getting Indonesian government help is difficult, it's not. It's no secret that Indonesia is one of the most corrupt countries on the planet, but we're not talking about the challenge of dealing with corrupt government officials here, but rather, dealing with the "true believers of change". Convincing the Indonesian government that an Obama presidency will be able to deliver that "change" and that it was in the interest of both countries to see that Barack Obama was elected was nothing more than a fait accompli for Faleomavaega's entourage.

For West Papau's governor in attendance, having been pacified at the prospect that an Obama presidency would enable him to make zillions trading carbon credits on the Chicago Climate Exchange, Barnabas Suebu would sit quietly as the fate of West Papau was decided.

The only issue of contention Faleomavaega would face from the Indonesian government would be the issue of West Papau. In the end, it was simply a give and take situation. The Obama campaign needed assistance from the Indonesian government and the Indonesian government wanted a free hand in Papau.

Later concerning Faleomavaega's meeting, Indonesian presidential spokesman Dino Patti Djalal would have this to say: "One thing that is sure is that Faleomevaega's visit here has changed his views about Indonesia. It has made him realize this country is so vast and complex it cannot be reduced by the Papua issue..." Dino said Faleomavaega was known as a US Congress member who often commented on the Papuan issue but now he had changed his views. "He now sees that Papua is inalienable part of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia."

Faleomevaega's and meeting with Indonesia's president regarding West Papau and his subsequent flipflop on supporting West Papau's right to self-determination is something that you might think would warrant at least a press release on the congressman's website, but there is nothing, nor is there any mention on the House Subcommittee's site. No press release, nothing, not even a mere mention of his trip to Indonesia.

In the end, everyone got what they wanted, all to the detriment of the West Papuans.

The is no denying the fact that the prospects of an Obama presidency has emboldened the Indonesian government's brutal repression in Papau. In an earlier article, we would explain in detail how an Obama presidency would stoke ethnic and religious chauvinism in Indonesia and how Indonesia's Islamic fundamentalists will use an Obama presidency to radicalize a new contingent of militants from the ranks of Islam's moderates. Individuals who are mesmerized by the phantasmagorical image of one of their own now inhabiting the White House and who will see it as a sign of America's impending submission and our nation's acquiescence to the superiority of Islam. Tee-shirts blazoned with messianic images of Barack Hussein Obama are already starting to replace the Osama Bin Laden tee-shirts that have been so popular in Indonesia. In Indonesia Barack Obama is fast becoming the "Che Guevara" of Indonesia's young wannabe Islamists.

The Indonesian government is not only failing to protect the West Papuans from the violence of militant Islam, the government is actively stoking the fires of ethnic and religious chauvinism and supporting intimidation againstWest Papuans with many in recent days taking to the streets protesting the introduction of Islamic law.

For Indonesia's national news agency to refer to the US government as the "George Bush administration" highlights the dichotomy of opposing foreign policy positions that are being both presented and exploited by the left. That Indonesia would feel it was safe to renew their campaign of brutal repression in Papau, in the last few months of the current administration, the diplomatic sabotage conducted by the Obama campaign is partially if not wholly responsible.

Larry Martin Vs. Time Magazine

2008-09-08T03:28:00.001+08:00

I sent Ms. Claire Suddath with Time magazine an email immediately after I read the interview with myself entitled "The Blogger Behind the Obama Hit Job". My email to Claire simply said "There were a few minor errors in your article." For a brief moment I guess I was expecting to hear back from Time magazine acknowledging the error and perhaps printing an apology and retraction, but as I hit the send button on my email I came to the bitter realization that Time magazine had accomplished exactly what they had initially set out to do and that was to damage and discredit both Dr. Corsi and myself.

In their zeal to discredit Corsi, Time Magazine takes on one of Dr. Corsi's main sources for his book "The Obama Nation", that being myself. Superciliously dismissive of both my blog and myself, Time magazine goes on to describe me as being a "less-than-authoritative source" and then proceeds with the character assassination.

"Corsi repeatedly relies on Martin's accounts of Indonesian news reports to bolster his case for Obama's connections to Islam. For example, in a translated article about a secular school that Obama later attended, Martin writes: "Each Friday, all the school childen [sic] must wear Muslim clothes and that also includes children who are non-muslim [sic]." But that line does not appear in the original news report. What was Martin's source for his repeated insistence that Obama's former school requires students to dress in traditional Muslim attire on Fridays?"

Oh, but that line does appear in the original news report and here it is in the complete context. The following line below is from the original Indonesian news report used as a source. Kaltim Post - 27 January 2007

"Itu sekolah Islam? Bukan, itu sekolah umum berstatus negeri sejak 1970. Tiap Jumat, anak sekolah mengenakan pakaian Muslimah, termasuk yang beragama non-Muslim."

It is an Islamic school? No, it has been a State school since 1970. But every Friday, the children are required to wear Muslim clothes, and that includes the non-Muslim children.

Unusual? Hardly, a US State Department report on religious freedom in Indonesia clearly states that elementary and secondary students in Indonesia are at times forced to undergo religious instruction in a religion other than their own and recently there have been reports of female Catholic students being forced to wear the Islamic veil.

Its one thing for the biased Time magazine to be superciliously dismissive of both myself and my blog. It's another to defame and libel me.

To be continued...

Time Magazine Reporting For Duty

2008-08-27T15:01:00.001+08:00

It is one thing to be called "The Blogger Behind the Obama Hit Job" and quite another to be referred to as a "less-than-authoritative source". Needless to say, it naturally begs the question - Who would be an authoritative source? For much of America's mainstream media, the answer is of course themselves. But alas the times they are a changing.

On to the rebuttal.

"The first mention of Martin's blog comes on Page 52 of Obama Nation, when it is cited as the source for Corsi's assertion that when Obama's Muslim stepfather registered him at a Catholic school in Indonesia, Obama's religion was recorded as "Islam." No one disputes that."

Actually, the Obama camp and America's mainstream media has been disputing this from the very first day it was reported on this blog.

"In fact, Martin is not the only one who reported the information; on Jan. 25, 2007, the same day that Martin posted it on his blog, the Associated Press reported the same information, from the Fransiskus Assisi Catholic school, and ran a photograph of the document."

Actually, the post Time magazine is referring to was posted here on the 24th of January 2007 and not the 25th. And not to split hairs or anything, but don't forget that over here in Southeast Asia we are a day ahead of you guys back in America. (International Date Line). That would make my posting actually 2 days prior to the Associated Press report.

"Although Lolo Soetero, Obama's stepfather, was nominally a Muslim, Obama (then known as Barry Soetoro), studied Catholic catechism at the school."

Nope false. Obama never studied "Catholic catechism" at school, he studied Islam.

"What was Martin's source for his repeated insistence that Obama's former school requires students to dress in traditional Muslim attire on Fridays? "I've lived [in Southeast Asia] for 20 years; I go to schools all the time," he says. However, he admits that he never visited Obama's former school on a Friday."

Martin's source is... Martin himself. Did you think I was going to use CNN as a source?

Having spent almost my entire adult life in Southeast Asia, I think I might have an idea of what goes on in the schools here and believe it or not, but after 20 years I don't need a weatherman to tell me which way the wind blows.

Obama and the Audacity of CNN

"In a 2007 post, Martin also claims that the Indonesian title of Obama's book The Audacity of Hope — Menerjang Harapan — means "Jihad." This, says Martin, is what Indonesians see when they encounter Obama's book. However, his translation is a distortion of the Indonesian phrase, which in English is literally "To Challenge Hope."'

"Menerjang Harapan" is not an Indonesian phrase nor is it a distortion. It is two Indonesian words that are never used together. Google it (the two words together) and the only references you will find will be Barack Obama's own self-serving book.

In the context the words are used it leaves the actual meaning open to ambiguous interpretation, kind of like poetry if you will. As I stated and as many of the comments have conceded, the translation is incorrect and done in such a way as to excite the Indonesians. How exactly it excites the Indonesians is the only area of contention.

It is the truth that always prevails.

Justice Holmes once wrote, "when men have realized that time has upset many fighting faiths, they may come to believe even more than they believe the very foundations of their own conduct that the ultimate good desired is better reached by free trade in ideas - that the best test of truth is the power of the thought to get itself accepted in the competition of the market."

Barack Obama can fight back all he wants and accuse his adversaries of bigotry and racism, he can coerce a compliant and malleable mainstream media to do the same, he can publish long-winded rebuttals and set up websites to "fight the smears" and when worse comes to worse he can always threaten his opponents. Why not... it is what they would do in Indonesia.

I've seen many people over the years here in Southeast Asia who have dared to speak out, many who were imprisoned, bankrupted or beaten for simply speaking out. I've seen many who have been denied both political and religious freedom and I've seen their oppressors employ the very same exact tactics that Barack Obama is employing. The accusations of bigotry and racism, the state-controlled media and untimately the threats.

Like Barack Obama, I've lived in Southeast Asia, albeit a long longer than Obama did. But unlike Barack Obama I've never been subscriber to cultural or moral equivalency nor have I felt compelled to deride my own country in a a pathetic effort to establish that equivalency. I know that deriding my own country overseas only emboldens those who deny freedom and liberty to others. As an advocate of American exceptionalism, I've always felt myself compelled to spread the message of what is good about America rather than what is bad and for me that normally starts with steaming bowl of chili con carne and a plate of tacos.

"Peace, Love and American hegemony, one plate of tacos at a time"

Have you seen the look on a Malaysian or Indonesian's face as they timidly for the first time in their lives poke around at a plate of crispy tacos, when they lift that crispy, crunchy tortilla shell and bite into that Tex-Mex goodness? I have seen it and it is a sight of beauty and love that completely transcends all political, ideological and religious differences.

Related Posts:

America's Ambassadors or America's Shame

You're Not The First

2008-08-21T14:08:00.003+08:00

"Human beings, who are almost unique in having the ability to learn from the experience of others, are also remarkable for their apparent disinclination to do so."

~ Douglas Adams

Barack Obama Vs. America

2008-08-20T15:02:00.007+08:00

"His is just one of what will likely be many more lie-filled books rushed to print this election cycle, which are cobbled together from debunked internet sources to make money and advance a partisan agenda. We will respond to these smears forcefully with all means at our disposal."

For freedom loving Americans, the words above should be downright chilling, they are hateful and combined with the ominous threats issued from Obama's team are downright Orwellian. But what is more disturbing though than the words themselves is the collusion of the mainstream media and those who have traditionally assumed the role in America as the vanguards of free speech.

Emboldened and aided by a sycophantical mainstream media eager to tag-team and pummel Corsi relentlessly with vile ad hominem attacks and characterize both him and his book in the most defamatory and vituperative of terms. Where is the outrage? It was Barack Obama himself who touted his foreign policy credentials with the cute anecdotal stories of his childhood in Indonesia. To paraphrase Justice Stewart, where does he get off crying "Smear", when an opponent or an industrious blogger or reporter discovers and proves that Barack Obama or rather Barry Soetoro was all the while being dishonest with the American people. For Obama, the best test of truth is not to get itself accepted in the competition of the market but to kill the messenger. Not only is this un-American, but unacceptable.

Our country's forefathers and those who made the ultimate sacrifice for freedom would be rolling over in the graves at the prospect of Obama's "change" and progression evolving in policy.

For the advocates of this perverse militant egalitarianism, reasoned argument is replaced by a conditioned reflex as Obama's legions of lickspittle automatons mindlessly parrot as "evidence" whatever Obama himself has written in any one of his own self-serving books. You see this has never been about the free interchange of ideas or even the ascertainment of truth, this is all about entitlement and nothing not even freedom or liberty is going to get in the way.

"Unfit For Publication"? I'm sorry Barack Obama, but this is America and not some tinpot dictatorship and if Penthouse Magazine and Jet Magazine are fit for publication then so is Jerry Corsi's book. Having said that though, there is no doubt in my mind that you and your legion of jackbooted apparatchiks would have Corsi's book consigned to the flames if you had the power and that Mr. Obama is why you must be stopped at all costs.

So back to the threat that "We will respond to these smears forcefully with all means at our disposal."

Well Mr. Obama, I am one of Jerry Corsi's "debunked internet sources", now vindicated and I say, bring it on.

Obama: A Vote for Servitude

2008-08-07T05:45:00.000+08:00

"In America," Obama says, "we have this strong bias toward individual action. You know, we idolize the John Wayne hero who comes in to correct things with both guns blazing. But individual actions, individual dreams, are not sufficient."

Barack Obama ~ Interview with the Chicago Reader 1995

You are reading the words of a man, a man vying for the presidency of the United States of America and who does not have the faintest clue of what America stands for.

Barack Obama's call for sacrifice is the direct opposite of what America stands for, of why America has became a beacon of hope for the oppressed throughout the world. They have come here to escape poverty and dictatorship; they have come here to live their own lives, where they can exist by right and not by permission of the government, the community or any collective. Obama's philosophy of duty, obligation and sacrifice that which he calls "change " differs little from that of countries like Iran or Venezuela.

To quote Ayn Rand, "America's abundance was not created by public sacrifices to "the common good," but by the productive genius of free men who pursued their own personal interests and the making of their own private fortunes." That includes the free men and the shareholders of companies like Exxon Mobil or General Electric and of men like Bill Gates or Warren Buffet.

It was John Adams who once said, "The moment the idea is admitted into society that property is not as sacred as the laws of God, and that there is not a force of law and public justice to protect it, anarchy and tyranny commence. If "Thou shalt not covet" and "Thou shalt not steal" were not commandments of Heaven, they must be made inviolable precepts in every society before it can be civilized or made free."

Dick Durban's veiled threat to the oil companies that there is a limit to the amount of profit they can make should give an indication to all of what this "change" is that Obama speaks of. Today it will be the oil companies and then who will it be tomorrow...?

The right to liberty and freedom gives us the right to act on our own judgment, the right not to have a gun pointed at our heads, forcing us to part with our property for the collective good or to just simply exist as a mere tool to serve the goals of others.

Transformed by the language of conflict and coercion, Obama's philosophy of "change" not unlike Marxism or Islamic totalitarianism has become an ideology of violence to be resisted uncompromisingly by those among us who value property above fraternity and liberty above equality.

A Brilliant Liberal Mind

2008-06-30T04:44:00.007+08:00

"I started thinking, 'How does one stop it?' " ~ Danielle Allen

It is not often that I read something from back home that puts a chill down my spine, but the recent article in the Washington Post by Matthew Mosk entitled "An Attack that Came out of the Ether" did just that.

In the article, an enamoured Mosk fawns over the diabolical musings of Dr. Danielle Allen who obsesses over the "secret identities" of 23 individuals and how they can be silenced. Their crimes you may ask? Speaking ill of the left's golden calf. While both Mosk and Allen agonize over the alleged rumors concerning Barack Hussein Obama's Muslim heritage neither makes the attempt to simply refute the allegations and instead subtly implies that the government should be able to control what people write and say.

It is a central tenet of the first amendment that the government must remain neutral in the marketplace of ideas. But Dr. Danielle Allen is not alone is her desire to stifle and inhibit the free flow of ideas, just last year I posted an essay here entitled "Freedom From Fear" where one of Dr. Allen's liberal comrades Dr. Eddison Richardson called for Ann Coulter to be arrested for implying that John Edwards was a faggot.

In the words of Justice Holmes,

"...when men have realized that time has upset many fighting faiths, they may come to believe even more than they believe the very foundations of their own conduct that the ultimate good desired is better reached by free trade in ideas - that the best test of truth is the power of the thought to get itself accepted in the competition of the market, and that truth is the only ground upon which their wishes safely can be carried out."

It's been said that one never truly appreciates something until they have lost it. For the majority of Americans it is difficult to imagine what the loss of freedom and liberty is like. Many can't imagine living in a country where you can be arrested for you say or write. Like many of you, growing up in America I had always taken my liberty and freedom for granted. That all changed when I moved overseas and discovered firsthand that it is our love of freedom and liberty that has made our country an exceptional nation, it is today what we fight for.

Our forefathers before and our brave soldiers today are fighting and sacrificing their lives for freedom and liberty, not for diversity, respect, tolerance, "politcal correctness" or for that matter "Hope" and "Change".

Shame on you Danielle Allen and shame on the Washington Post.

Obama: Outside Looking In

2008-05-20T02:25:00.006+08:00

I suppose I should apologize for the lack of updates. To all that have emailed, all is well, I've just been terribly busy with work recently. Rest assured that the blogging will return very soon with fresh updates regarding how Obama's campaign is being viewed overseas here in Southeast Asia.

To my compatriots back home, many who are war weary and hopelessy enslaved by political correctness, it is difficult to explain exactly how a vote for Obama = a vote for appeasement, but what Americans are playing with is "fire".

In many ways I'm shocked to hear how my original reporting on Obama has been refered to by the mainstream media as simply rumours and fear mongering. It is amazing how so many Americans will trust CNN and simply dismiss everyone else "out of hand".

With your support we can win, we can expose CNN and Obama for the lies they have told the American people. And with your support I will do all that is required to see that Obama never sees the White House.

Never in my life have I been so outspoken, but then again, I've seen the other side and I know exactly how the prospects of an Obama presidency will be perceived.

Obama must be stopped at all costs.

Say tuned.

Good Luck Barry...! From Indonesia

2008-03-12T04:27:00.005+08:00

"Good Luck, Barry!" the shout gave birth to Indonesia's Obama Fan Club established by the childhood friends and alumni of the Democrat party's presidential candidate.

The shout of support was given by 18 childhood friends of Barack Obama from when he went to school at SDN 01 Menteng (Besuki Primary School), Indonesia on Saturday, March 1st at 2:30pm.

18 from the original 40 of Barack Obama's classmates gathered around in the schoolyard against a backdrop on the roof that read "Good Luck Barry".

"Not all of Obama's friends could come" There are those who are deceased and those that no longer live in the area said Sonni Gondokusuman, one of the alumni of SDN Menteng.

The Obama Fan Club was formed to show support for Obama. "This is our way of showing our support for Barry" said the coordinater of the Obama Fan Club, Rully Dasaad

"From the first time I saw him on televison, I knew Barry was ambitious" He has wisdom. I am sure he will win said Rully who is a professional photographer.

Would Rully and his friend's hope be realized?

Obama Fan Club: Good Luck Barry

Obama's Messianic Foreign Policy

2008-03-10T05:30:00.002+08:00

In a recent response to the circulation of a photograph of Barack Obama dressed in what has been described as "traditional Somali garb" Obama's foreign policy adviser, Susan Rice, said that the circulation of the photograph was divisive and suggested "that the customs and cultures of other parts of the world are worthy of ridicule or condemnation."

The statement, of course, begs the question "Are some customs and cultures of other parts of the world in fact worthy of ridicule or condemnation?" Being bolstered by the certainties of my own "expatriate empiricism", my first reaction was simply to say to myself "yeah and so what?" I mean despite the political incorrectness, the harsh reality is that some of the customs and cultures of other parts of the world are in fact worthy of our ridicule or/and condemnation.

I don't suppose Susan Rice has ever come face to face with the proclivities of a cultural who experience no moral dilemma with beating their wives to within an inch of their lives or with customs of a primitive society who to this very day still dine on the occasional "long pig". But you see, this is where expatriate empiricism trumps not just the liberal academic intelligentsia of the West but the profound intellectual arrogance of Barack Obama's ivy-league foreign policy advisers.

Aside from the fact that the photographs of Barack Obama in of themselves never actually "said" or "suggested" anything, it was Susan Rice's recondite statement concerning the photograph that I found confounding. Not just because Susan Rice's statement and vociferous indignation seemed to be completely devoid of any literal meaning, or attributed to any logical thought process, but because I question how a foreign policy adviser who subscribes to the doctrine of cultural and moral equivalency can effectively advise the Presidency on issues that concern not only nation's interests, but our national security as well.

"Why must we change and yet our enemies get to remain the same? Don't ever expect to hear the Obama camp ever answer that question. The harsh reality is that for Barack Obama and his foreign policy advisers, this isn't about what is in America's best interests or even our nation's national security. It is about America changing and seeking atonement by redressing the sins of the past. Led by an administration who is predisposed to see America not as an exceptional nation, but as a bully, a war-mongering ogre, perpetually bloodied with the guilt of imperialism and inescapably tainted by a past history of inequality and racism.

Understanding Obama and his foreign policy

As Spengler would so adroitly point out, "Cherchez la femme" - When you want to uncover an unspecified secret, look for the woman. As Mona Charen would uncover in Obama's own book he inadvertently sheds some light on his formative years and the political views of his mother.

"Looking back, I'm not sure Lolo ever fully understood what my mother was going through ... why the things he was working so hard to provide for her seemed only to increase the distance between them ... He landed a job in the government relations department of an American oil company. ... Sometimes I would overhear him and my mother arguing in their bedroom, usually about her refusal to attend his company dinner parties, where American businessmen from Texas and Louisiana would slap Lolo's back and boast about the palms they had greased to obtain the new offshore drilling rights, while their wives complained to my mother about the quality of Indonesian help. He would ask her how it would look for him to go alone, and remind her that these were her own people, and my mother's voice would rise to almost a shout."

"They are not my people!"

Herodotus once said that "If anyone, no matter who, were given the opportunity of choosing from amongst all the nations in the world the set of beliefs which he thought best, he would inevitably - after careful considerations of their relative merits - choose that of his own country"

A young mulatto abandoned by his black Kenyan father and cared for by his white American mother, an anthropologist and Islamophile who hated America and subsequently went native. We may never completely understand the pathological self-criticism that Obama holds deep down in his soul, the overwhelming guilt that consumes him or the messianic aspirations that he now seems to revel in.

What we do know is that in Plato's Euthyphro, Socrates would advance argument that piety to many gods, who all want conflicting devotions is impossible. Something the Democrats and their Golden Calf have yet to realize.

Rick Moran Succumbs to Obama Mania

2008-03-02T15:06:00.005+08:00

Here at "An American Expat in Southeast Asia" I try to write about the subjects that I have an intimate knowledge of. Subjects that pertain to Southeast Asia and ones where I can offer a clear and concise analysis of and a perspective from an American citizen here. Many of my posts here regarding Barack Obama starting in January of 2007 have been my own direct translations of Indonesian media reports along with my own analysis and opinion of how Barack Obama's bid for the presidency is viewed here in Indonesia and Southeast Asia. In fact the very first English language translations on the web of the life of a young "Barry Soetoro" were first posted here back in January of 2007. I've spent a lot of time researching Barack Obama in Indonesia and interviewing people in the region. Speaking the language and having spent much of my adult over here, I think I am fairly qualified to opine on the matter.

That is why I took issue with a recent post by Rick Moran at Rightwing Nuthouse entitled 'Enough With All Of This "Obama Is A Mooslim" Crap'. In a haughty long-winded screed aimed at fellow conservatives Rick Moran wielded a broad brush and accused his fellow conservatives of being "ignorant" and "unschooled" for having the audacity to dare question issues pertaining to Barack Hussein Obama's Muslim heritage. I emailed Rick Moran and asked him to clarify his remarks with regard to how Muslims elsewhere perceive Barack Obama and his Muslim heritage what Moran had considered "bizarre". In a Pavlovian response, Rick Moran accused me of being a "bigot" and that he didn't "give a shit" what I had to say regarding Obama. Needless to say, I was taken aback. This is the type of response I've come to expect from the Obama fanbois but one that I didn't expect to receive from a self-proclaimed conservative. Surely one would think that substance trumps symbolism, but apparently not for Rick Moran.

For Rick Moran, it's quite simple, and that is the the veracity of these reports regarding Barack Obama's heritage or patriotism is not to be made an issue of. What is an issue for Rick Moran though is the audacity of conservatives to dare tread into what Moran and his liberal cohorts consider to be an illegitimate area of inquiry. For Moran, simple things like facts though are irrelevant. Exacerbating Moran's agony it seems was the publishing of a photograph of Barack Obama dressed as some sort of Muslim goat herder. The same Barack Obama who won't wear an American flag pin on his lapel.

Between now and November I will continue to translate Indonesian media reports and offer a perspective from Southeast Asia offering a fresh insight when I can. And if I uncover photos, I'll see that they get published as well. I will stand by what i have said previously that an Obama presidency will be disastrous for Southeast Asia and to the overall war on terrorism. I'm also not alone in my sentiments. Greg Sheridan has also recently voiced his concerns on how an Obama presidency will affect the region. In the end though it will be for the American voters to decide.

And Rick Moran? As far as I'm concerned, Mr. Moran can sit there on his fat ass in front of the computer screen with his bag of Doritos and can of Diet Coke and stew all he wants. Eventually he will have to come to the bitter realization that his hubris and sanctimonious sermonizing contribute nothing to the national debate or to the marketplace of ideas.

Obama and CNN: Black, White or Yellow

2008-02-26T22:41:00.004+08:00

"...If anyone is still puzzled about the facts, in fact I have never been a Muslim. We had to send CNN to look at the school that I attended in Indonesia where kids were wearing short pants and listening to ipods to indicate that this was not a madrassa but was a secular school in Indonesia..." ~ Barack Obama, 24 February 2008

In a recent episode of Saturday Night Live that featured a parody of a Clinton Obama debate, a faux Campbell Brown chirped "Like nearly everyone in the news media, the three of us are totally in the tank for Senator Obama". Funny? Yes, but this might have hit a bit too close to home.

Surely Barack Obama wouldn't lie now would he? But did the Obama camp really send CNN to Indonesia? Are we to believe that when the accusations of Barack Obama attending a madrassa as a child first broke on Fox News last year that Sam Feist's reply to the Obama camp would be "Please relax. You furnish the money, I'll furnish the debunk."

Like many Americans, my parents raised me to believe that it is the truth that matters. It is. Network news broadcasts and newspaper reports have the power to shape our perceptions, consciously and subliminally and as consumers we naturally expect a bit of integrity on behalf of the networks and media outlets. We expect that opinion and commentary are clearly identified as such. What we don't expect is that the news has been manufactured or bought and paid for. That CNN would assist Obama in deceiving the American people is downright despicable and I think if what Obama is saying is true, then both CNN and Obama owe the American people an apology.

For Barack Obama, the facts are that he is a liar and no one, not CNN or Sam Feist is ever going to change that fact. There is no amount of spin, flooding the internet or debunking that is ever going to change the fact that Barack Hussein Obama was born a Muslim and that he practiced Islam as a child, no more than I can change the fact that I was born and baptized a Catholic and attended Catholic school as a child.

Barack Obama often speaks of hope and change, but for a man that truly aspires to lead our nation, hope and change will simply not suffice, there can be no dignity without honesty.

If you haven't read the two related posts below, you need to

Related Posts

CNN Calls The Kettle Black

Obama and the Audacity of CNN

Defeating Islamic Extremism 101 - Part 3

2008-02-24T18:17:00.003+08:00

"They (the Taliban) might be implementing Islamic law, an Islamic state, but they completely waste their time because they do it in a totally un-Islamic way"

In a letter to his mother in late 2000, Australian David Hicks would offer a glimpse into the mindset of a Western Al Qaeda recruit who was slowly beginning to see the pharisaical hypocrisy in Al Qaeda's austere call to primitive purity. What Hick's had failed to see though was that Al Qaeda and the Taliban's revolution was more "nationalistic" than "Islamic" and it's violence inspired more so by jealousy rather than jihad.

I can understand exactly how David Hicks felt at the time. You see, I had been in the same situation as Hicks once before, the only difference I suppose is that I never made Al Qaeda's final cut. Unlike Western Al Qaeda recruits David Hicks and Adam Gadahn, I would have an epiphany, a sudden intuitive realization of the profound hypocrisy in the words and deeds of Islam's self-proclaimed über elite, a pharisaical hypocrisy that not only made their avowals of pious purity unconvincing, but one that made them vulnerable.

My first day at the madrassa was interesting to say the least, but I had made my decision. I was there to teach English and in return Hassan and his friends would teach me all about Islam. I'd mentioned to Hassan that I had never taught English before, but that didn't seem to matter. What mattered is that I spoke English and that the children didn't. I told Hassan that I guess I could help with the basic conversational English and so I went to a book store and picked up a some elementary school books for my first class the next day.

I arrived back at the madrassa later after the evening prayer. Just in time for dinner and I joined Hassan at one of the wooden picnic-type tables in the canteen. The students were all sitting on the vinyl-covered floor in a large room next to the canteen eating their dinner. In total there was around 30-40 students with four students to each large rounded tray consisting of a mound of rice, four hard-boiled eggs, some dried fried anchovies, boiled tapioca leaves and a sambal. The students were sitting on the floor many with their left hand positioned under their knee and then eating with their right hands. Hassan must have caught me watching this and then proceeded to explain to me that the left hand is dirty and meant for cleaning yourself. Making a mental note of this, I picked up the cup of coffee in front of me with my right hand and took a sip.

Hassan didn't realize that it wasn't the way the students were eating that had caught my eye, but rather what they were eating. This was something that I found a bit disturbing, the food served to the children hardly seemed to be sustaining. There was no meat and the amount of food that the children were given hardly seemed to be even enough to even fill their stomachs. As the students finished eating the passed by our table on their way into the dormitories.

By this time our food had arrived, a sumptuous spread of saffron-scented biryani rice, lamb and dhal curries, a large omelette of some type, fresh vegetables and several large pieces of naan. Being the new English teacher I sat at the table with Hassan and his guests from Pakistan. With the students all passing by obviously still hungry I felt embarrassed and ashamed and yet Hassan and his friend didn't seem to be phased in the least, they proceeded to help themselves. As I sat there, Hassan spoke up and asked me to join in. I looked at the table and at the people eating before me and then asked Hassan if I could kindly have a fork and spoon. Hassan frowned and then called for the cook to bring a fork and spoon over to the table. Hassan took the fork and spoon from the cook and handed it to me and as he did I seemed to find myself focusing on his other wrist, the one with the gold Rolex on it.

As I ate my meal, I found myself intrigued by the fact that Hassan and his students didn't seem to be very Malay to me, they seemed to have cultivated a predilection for everything either Arabic or Pakistani, as evidenced not only by their gross adulation of the dress and mannerisms of their "brothers" from Pakistan but by their adoption of a dualistic worldview where they see themselves as part of some cosmic, Manichaean struggle between good an evil. It wouldn't be long before I found myself being constantly critiqued on what was acceptable under Islamic jurisprudence and what was not.

to be continued...

Related Posts

Defeating Islamic Extremism 101 - Part 1

Defeating Islamic Extremism 101 - Part 2

Obama On Indonesian Television - Part 2

2008-02-20T23:10:00.003+08:00

In the video below, the reporter visits Zulfian Mirzan and his wife who bought Obama's childhood home in Jakarta just four years ago from Barack Obama's stepsister Maya Soetoro-Ng for 500 million rupiah (USD 54,500). The reporter describes the inside of the home and shows all the rooms, including the room with the single bed across the hall from the master bedroom which the reporter states was a young Barack Obama's room. According to the current owners, the house including all the interiors has not been changed since the time Obama and his family lived there. The end of the video shows the Zulfian Mirzan's new baby who will be living in Obama's room.

Right click to open in a new window:

*Video* Tracking Barack Obama: Obama's Childhood Home

The beginning of the next video below shows Obama on the campaign trail while the Indonesian reporter in the background explains that before Barack Obama became famous in the United States he attended two schools in Indonesia as a child. The reporter then shows the two schools, the Menteng Primary School and the Franciscus Assisi Primary School where Obama was registered under the name of "Barry Soetoro". The video ends with the reporter stating that Obama was a clever and friendly boy and that he left Indonesia in 1972 for Hawaii.

Right click to open in a new window:

*Video* Tracking Barack Obama: Assisi Primary School and Menteng Primary School

Related Posts

An American Expat in Southeast Asia: Barack Obama

Obama On Indonesian Television - Part 1

2008-02-19T22:28:00.001+08:00

This is the beginning of a two part series here at "An American Expat in Southeast Asia" entitled "Obama on Indonesian Television". The videos below are from DetikTV in Jakarta who ran a small series in February 2008 entitled tracking Barack Obama in Indonesia. The information you will find in the videos below confirms and substantiates much of what we originally translated and reported in our series of posts on "Obama in Indonesia" back in January of 2007.

The picture above is seen in the following video, showing a young Barry Soetoro (Barack Hussein Obama) posing with his mother, Ann, half sister, Maya, and maternal grandfather Stanley Dunham in Hawaii in the early 1970s after the family returned from Indonesia. Ann Dunham would return to Indonesia and shortly after this picture was taken, Lolo Soetoro Mangunharjo would later divorce Ann and then remarry, fathering another two children.

Right click to open in a new window:

*Video* Tracking Barack Obama: From Menteng to Dempo

In the next video below, a photo is shown of a young Barack Obama and his father Hussein Obama, a Muslim from Kenya and then his mother and stepfather Lolo Soetoro.

Referring to a young Barack Obama, the reporter states in Indonesian "juga hidup tengah-tengah orang muslim" (he lived his life in the middle of Muslims) - an interesting choice of words to use which can have an ambiguous meaning depending on how exactly it is translated. Highlighting the United States presidential campaign, the reporter states that Obama's enemies have been making a political issue out of Obama's "life among the Muslims". The reporter then states, "Barry yang punya wajah lucu sering dimainkan teman-teman pernah dipakaikan sarong meski tak pernah ikut solat" (Barry had a funny face and his friends made fun of him by putting a sarong on him even though he didn't pray). The emphasis here is that even though Barry was a Muslim and was in the mosque and was wearing Islamic clothes, that he was only "playing" and not really "praying". I suppose you can interpret that any way you wish.

In the second part of the video, Zulfan Adi, a former neighborhood playmate of Obama's who has been cited in numerous news reports claiming that Obama regularly attended Friday prayers with his stepfather Lolo Soetoro points out the "Musholla Al-Rahman" (Al-Rahman Prayer Room) to the reporter where he then goes out of his way to explain that Obama wasn't "praying" in the prayer room, he only "playing". That Zulfan Adi found it necessary to use and emphasize the English word "praying" in the Indonesian language report leads us to the self-evident conclusion that this part of the report if not all of it was simply staged for foreign consumption.

Right click to open in a new window:

*Video* The Prayer Room Where Obama Played

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Related Posts

Tracking Down Obama in Indonesia

Tracking Down Obama in Indonesia - Part 2

Tracking Down Obama in Indonesia - Part 3

Britain's Islamic Fatalism

2008-02-17T15:41:00.003+08:00

"I ask him to bring a new spirit of urgency to the fight against the Zeus of Iran and his attempt to kidnap our freedoms; and by doing so, to show New Labour's commitment to the true spirit of Europe - not just to an economic community, or to monetary union, but to European civilization itself."

The excerpt above is from a letter written by Salman Rushdie to Britain's "The Guardian" newspaper on 14 February 1997. It was on this day, the eighth anniversary of the fatwa against him, that Salman Rushdie would castigate Europe's politicians for cynically abandoning the ideals of free expression and human rights. In retrospect, Sir Salman Rushdie's words would offer a veiled glimpse at the coming future of European and Western civilization. A civilization that would one day willingly subjugate itself to dhimmitude, all in the name of diversity and "religious tolerance".

You might have expected a strongly worded statement on the 14th of February from 10 Downing Street, perhaps even in response to Hamid Ansari's declaration on Iranian State television that the "fatwa" calling for the death of Sir Salman Rushdie still stands, but this is not the courageous and proud Britain of the past, this is a nation now resigned to fatalism. Islamic fatalism.

It is hard to imagine that Sir Salman Rushdie could have possibly imagined that just eleven years later not only would the Archbishop of Canterbury be conceding that Britain's acceptance of Islamic law was inevitable, but that Iran would be on the very verge of developing a deliverable nuclear weapon. Is there truly any hope for a civilization hopelessly consumed with a "pathological self-hatred", a self-hatred that has now become dangerously fused with both anti-rationalism and as the Archbishop has so demonstrated, an Islamic fatalism?

Britain's latest disgrace is to unwittingly assist Islamic extremists in perpetuating their "us versus them" dichotomy by issuing special "Islamic bonds". What was wrong with the regular bonds you might ask? Well, the for Britain's Islamic fundamentalists, the regular bonds are "unclean" by Islamic standards. Make no doubt about it, with the assistance of quislings like Rowan Williams and Chancellor Alistair Darling, Islam's foot soldiers are busy with the task to ensure that Islam's religious precepts are all being duly incorporated into civil law.

For a government hopelessly enamored with the concepts of diversity and multiculturalism, these sharia-compliant bonds are a naive and misguided way of tapping Middle-East money and building bridges with the Muslim community, but the reality is that this "banking apartheid" contributes not to economic prosperity, but only to racial and ethnic chauvinism. What Britain's leaders lack is foresight, the foresight to see that that by rejecting their own principles and values and then bolstering Islamic self-assertion, chauvinism and values, they only substantiate the dualistic sociopolitical ideology professed by Islam's hardcore fundamentalists. It is the relentless accommodation and appeasement of these fundamentalists that continues to embolden them.

When the day of maturity comes, and it will, these bonds will be repaid with English blood and not with sterling.

Britain's Archbishop of Panderbury

2008-02-10T12:59:00.000+08:00

"Our modern western definition of humanity is clearly not working very well. There is something about western modernity which really does eat away at the soul." so says Britain's leading Islamophile and closet druid Rowan Williams the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Hopelessly naive, if not anachronistic it seems almost predictable that Rowan Williams, a pagan druid, completely devoid of any moral compass would seem to revere the austere primitive purity of Rousseau's "noble savage". But William's 'conflict of conscience' is more founded in what Ratzinger referred to as a "pathological self-hatred" rather than his own misguided philosophical beliefs.

Joseph Ratzinger's 2004 essay entitled "If Europe Hates Itself" gives a glimpse into the source of a faithless Archbishop's torment when he states that "The West reveals here a hatred of itself, which is strange and can be only considered pathological; the West is laudably trying to open itself, full of understanding, to external values, but it no longer loves itself; in its own history, it now sees only what is deplorable and destructive, while it is no longer able to perceive what is great and pure."

The Constitutions of numerous nations, all with their emphasis on the principles of secularism, democracy, the rule of law and, above all, the equality of all human beings irrespective of caste, community, language or ethnicity are all derived from the British colonial legacy and Britain's gift to the world, the Magna Carta. There is a Commonwealth of Nations from Australia and New Zealand to India, Malaysia and Singapore who still value, cherish and respect their judiciary, legal system, bureaucracy and police. All cherished institutions, and all derived from British colonial administration.

There are millions of Singaporeans who see the statue of Sir Stamford Raffles on a daily basis as a warm reminder of their British colonial legacy. Millions of people around the globe who have been lifted from poverty to self-sustainability all thanks to the British. Having lived in Southeast Asia myself for over twenty years, the only thing that I think the British can justifiably be reviled for is their culinary legacy. Baked beans on toast and mushy peas. Vile and disgusting.

But as Joseph Ratzinger noted, none of this matters or is even seen by people like Rowan Williams, they are consumed with self-loathing and a "pathological self-hatred" and as Orwell stated in his 1941 essay entitled "England Your England", they are "unteachable", "only when their money and power are gone will the younger among them begin to grasp what century they are living in."

For Rowan Williams and the rest of his ilk, it is easy to place the blame on what they see to be an impersonal nation, they fail to realize that is not the nation, but themselves whom they hate. They hate themselves for what they have become. In Williams case, a faithless man of the cloth who has lost his way. This is not the first time Williams has found himself compelled to pee on the carpet and it won't be the last. Considering this, it should be obvious to all that William's would be best suited kicking around his misguided ideas on multiculturalism on some liberal university campus and not in his current position as the Archbishop of Canterbury.

In his book Millennium, Felipe Fernandez-Armesto writes, "I find it hard to believe that this generation will be able to muster the courage to fight for the sort of imperfect humanity which is willing to abort innocent lives while sanctifying those of criminals, or which undermines it's own principles by banning moral absolutes as politically incorrect."

In an environment that eschews moral absolutism and embraces cultural relativism and the "diversity of opinions", it is almost to be expected that someone like Rowan Williams' or his liberal cohorts would make the mindless suggestion that Islamic law be introduced as some sort of "supplementary jurisdiction". In what Burke warned us against, William's suggestion is tantamount to simply dismissing the "rule of law" as nothing more than some sort of abstract universalism in which all individual identity is lost, stripped as Burke said, and standing "in the nakedness and solitude of metaphysical abstraction." What happens when the laws overlap as they often do in countries like Malaysia? Which law would supersede the other? One of the central themes of this blog has been the dangers of diversity and multiculturalism. Hopefully, this incident will serve as an example of how cultural relativism inevitably drags moral relativism in it's wake. If what is wrong for one society can somehow be right for another, then what is wrong for one generation can justifiably be right for the next.

Rowan Williams' reckless comments will not soon be forgotten, they will be seen as a sign of weakness and will continue to embolden extremist groups such as Hizb ut-Tahrir and others who wish to see Islamic laws implemented. Only in September of last year, Malaysia's Chief Justice made the push for reforms to introduce hardline Islamic law here in Malaysia. Ironically his justification for change was very similar to Rowan Williams reasons, and that is the "us versus them" dichotomy, the post entitled "The Clutches of Colonialism" can be read here.

To paraphrase Orwell, "The intellectuals who hope to see England Islamicized will be disappointed. The gentleness, the hypocrisy, the thoughtlessness, the reverence for law and the hatred of uniforms will remain, along with the suet puddings and the misty skies. It needs some very great disaster, such as prolonged subjugation by a foreign enemy, to destroy a national culture."

Subjugation by way of multiculturalism is already underway. Today was the first strike on England's reverence for law.

Rowan Williams the Archbishop of Canterbury must either resign or be removed from office.

Guess Which Collectivist Said It

2008-02-10T04:40:00.000+08:00

This is an absolute riot! Enjoy!

Fun With Quotes: Guess Which Collectivist Said It

From The People's Cube of course.

HT - Flares Into Darkness

Helicopter Charters in Paradise

2008-02-07T13:46:00.000+08:00

I often get emails asking what life is like over here as an expatriate and among other things why I never post any photos. Well hopefully things are going to change this year as soon as I can afford to get myself one of those new digital cameras. And one that note, did you know there are over 300 posts here at "An American Expat in Southeast Asia"? Surely you haven't read them all. Ever wondered what you missed? Just below the "donate button" (remember every little bit counts) you will find the new Google search button that enables you to search the complete site. Trust me it's the best thing since sliced bread.

A good American friend of mine Cliff who shares my affection for fine Tex-Mex cuisine (I cook it, he eats it.) sent me this video a while back. Cliff is an ex-marine helicopter pilot who now lives over here and operates his own small helicopter charter service. For me, when I'm not working my virtual street corner here in the blogosphere (remember your donations help keep Lao off the street), I'm cooking Tex-Mex and when we're not scratching our heads trying to understand America's suicidal fascination with Obama or drinking tequila, this is what my friend Cliff does for a living. Enjoy the video!

Islam's Battle For The White House

2008-02-05T23:14:00.000+08:00

In an article entitled "World Captivated By US Presidential Race", William J. Kole with the Associated Press writes that a mantra for "transformational change" is resonating across the rest of a planet desperate for a fresh start. And while Barack Obama is the candidate generating most of the buzz abroad, Kole interestingly enough, makes no mention of Obama's popularity here in Southeast Asia. Instead Kole focuses mainly on Obama's popularity in Europe and Japan. One might consider that omission a bit strange considering the fact that Obama spent his childhood years growing up in Indonesia. But make no doubt about it, the "transformational change" is already happening here.

Almost a year ago, in an unprecedented and strongly worded foray into US politics, Australia's Prime Minister John Howard said an Obama victory in the presidential election would be disastrous for the war on terrorism. John Howard went on to state that if Barack Obama wins "Al Qaeda will trumpet it as the greatest victory they've ever had, and that will have implications in our region because of the link between Al Qaeda and JI (Jemaah Islamiyah)."

For those who believe that Barack Obama's campaign promise to "put an end to the war in Iraq" and to let our adversaries know that "we are willing to come to the table" will have the desired effect, they need look no farther than Australia.

Last December, Kevin Rudd defeated John Howard on a campaign promise to withdraw Australia's troops from Iraq, a platform now embraced by Barack Obama who has promised to withdraw US troops from Iraq.

Al Qaeda linked insurgency groups in the Middle East and here in Southeast Asia wasted no time in declaring John Howard's loss to Kevin Rudd as a major victory declaring that they have "shot down the crusader Howard". Accused of "fleeing like a cornered mouse", Kevin Rudd's Iraq policy has lent credence to Roosevelt's eternal aphorism that - "No man can tame a tiger into a kitten by stroking it. There can be no appeasement with ruthlessness. There can be no reasoning with an incendiary bomb and that we can only have peace with Al Qaeda at the price of total surrender.

An Obama victory in the US presidential elections will be disastrous for the war on terrorism and the mere prospects of that becoming a reality have already begun to raise red flags here in Southeast Asia. To say that Obama is popular among Muslims in Southeast Asia would be an understatement. Almost all Indonesians see Barack Hussein Obama as one of their brethren. His childhood in Indonesia, his Muslim heritage, his Muslim name, his black hair and brown eyes, his opposition to the War in Iraq and his sympathy towards the cause of Muslims around the world convinces Indonesians that Obama is one of their own. For Indonesians it is simple, if he walks like a Muslim and talks like a Muslim, then he is a Muslim.

The results from my own empirical research on Obama's popularity over here are disturbing to say the least. Of over 100 Muslims interviewed from both Indonesia and Malaysia who had an opinion in the US presidential election, only two individuals chose Hillary Clinton over Obama.

Not only is Obama popular though, but his popularity transcends the theological divide between the moderates and the extremists and thus provides a focal point of unity for the two groups. It is this "focal point of unity" which has the dangerous potential to inhibit any further attempts to ostracize the extremist elements and as such thwart our efforts at deradicalization. It's one thing to be known as a uniter, it's another when you are uniting the very individuals that we are trying to isolate and ostracize.

To suitably prejudiced Indonesians Obama's pledge to "rid the American mind-set of militarism" substantiates the position of the Islamic militants by rekindling the prophecies of Al Qaeda and Osama Bin Laden. That America is a decadent and vile ogre, bloodied with the guilt of imperialism and inescapably tainted by an anti-Islamic history. It is this symbolically violent imagery that Indonesia's fundamentalist orators will use to radicalize a new contingent of militants from the ranks of Islam's moderates. Individuals who are mesmerized by the phantasmagorical image of one of their own now inhabiting the White House and who will see it as a sign of America's impending submission and our nation's acquiescence to the superiority of Islam.

To put things into perspective, imagine if you will that in 1945 a war-weary America had elected Harry S. Yamamoto as president. An inexperienced and young president who's campaign promise was to "put an end to the war in Pacific" and to let our adversaries know that "we are willing to come to the table". What would be the reaction in Japan?

Unprecedented as it might have been there are those of us here in Southeast Asia who see the prescience and veracity in John Howard's ominous warning.

Related Posts

Defeating Islamic Extremism 101.

Defeating Islamic Extremism 101 - Part 2

2008-02-03T23:22:00.000+08:00

Prior to 9/11, it wasn't totally uncommon to run across men from time to time in Southeast Asia fully decked out in their full Islamist regalia, what the locals over here would refer to as someone who is very "alim" (learned, religious). Back in the late 80's and 90's what would be uncommon to find though was a Caucasian who spoke the language, a sure sign that the individual had a lot of interaction with the Indonesian and Malay community or perhaps had a local girlfriend. Times were much different back then and the expatriate community was quite small. Looking back, I suppose it was pretty much a novelty for the locals to see a foreigner who converse with them in their own language.

Hassan smiled and proceeded to heap accolades on me. "It's so nice to see an American who takes the time to learn our culture and language." I smiled and in response to his questions I confirmed that I did in fact have a Malay girlfriend that I liked very much. Hassan asked me if I had converted to Islam and I responded that I hadn't but that my girlfriend's mother spoke about it to me often. Hassan smiled and told me that if I was serious about this girl that I would eventually have to convert to Islam if I wished to marry her. Politely I told Hassan that is was a bit too early for that. Attempting to change the subject, I asked Hassan where he was from and what he was doing in Singapore. Hassan told me that he was from Malaysia and was in Singapore purchasing computer equipment for a madrassa and computer school that he ran in Malaysia. As I got up to leave the restaurant, Hassan scribbled his phone number in Malaysia on a napkin and asked me to stop up and visit sometime whenever I was in Kuala Lumpur.

A few months later I happened to be in Kuala Lumpur and being curious to see what a madrassa was like I decided to pay Hassan a visit. He wasn't exactly in Kuala Lumpur and in fact it was a bit of a drive and so I packed a few things in an overnight bag just in case I got too tired to drive back later. When I arrived at Hassan's madrassa I was bit taken aback at what I saw. The madrassa looked quite a bit rundown and all the students dressed in flowing white robes and turbans were standing outside when I drove in through the driveway to park my car in the back of the building. I walked around the building and spotted Hassan sitting with a few other gentlemen in the madrassa's canteen. Hassan stood up smiling and then introduced to me his "brothers" and then speaking in English, he told them that he had met me in Singapore, how I spoke Indonesian and Malay, that I had a Malay girlfriend and that I was interested in converting to Islam. Hassan's "brothers" smiled broadly and invited me to sit down and join them for a cup of tea. I noticed that Hassan's "brothers" were dressed slightly differently and then over a cup of tea, I came to learn that the "brothers" were in fact from Pakistan and were visiting in Malaysia for a few days before moving on to Indonesia. For the next couple hours we spoke mostly about Afghanistan and Islam and how the Taliban were transforming the country after the Russians had been defeated.

Looking back, what is interesting to note is how there was very little open animosity at the time the men were quite cordial with outsiders albeit their mannerisms made them seem crazier than shit house rats at times. In my attempts to be polite though I sat through the sales pitch that was now coming on strong and listened to the three of them go on about the beauty of Islam, how much it was a "way of life", one that united people around the world, how it was the fastest growing religion in the world and even of the audacious plans for an Islamic Caliphate that would encompass all of South and Southeast Asia. Hassan then took over, smiled at me and went on to explain to me how people's lives changed for the better once they had embraced Islam.

It was about this time that I noticed the students started assembling nearby. It was time to pray again. As the students came around I noticed something that struck me as disturbing, the students looked exhausted and tired, their eyes seemed listless and as they gathered around there seemed to be almost no deliberation in their movement. I couldn't put my finger on it, but something just wasn't right, and yet in this surreal setting I found myself almost overwhelmed with empathy. I wanted to do something. I wanted to help. I looked over at Hassan and asked "Do any of these children speak English?" Hassan frowned and told me that they didn't have an English teacher and then asked me "How would you like to help teach English here?" Without even giving it much thought, I agreed to help teach the students English.

to be continued....

Obama and the Inconvenient Truth

2008-01-10T19:02:00.000+08:00

Almost a year ago there was an Indonesian story on Sentator Barack Obama that never really received much notice from the US media. The story was first translated here at "An American Expat in Southeast Asia" in a post entitled Tracking Down Obama in Indonesia - Part 5

While the photo from the story has now made it's way across the web, the actual story and interview hasn't. It's understandable really, much of the Indonesian media reports on Obama have for the most part been ignored by America's main stream media especially stories that focused on Obama's religious upbringing in Indonesia.

The story is an interview with a woman named Tine Hahiyary who was a former teacher and principle of Besuki Primary school, during the time when a young Barry Soetero attended classes there. Revisiting Obama's childhood school the author notices the children in the school yard dressed in Western-Style clothing, but then reminds the reader that on Fridays, all the school childen must wear Muslim clothes and that also includes children who are non-muslim. An inconvenient truth that CNN and the rest of America's main stream media conveniently omitted.

What struck me the most odd from the story was Tine Hahiyary's recollection of a young Obama who was quite religious and actively took part in mengaji classes. A claim that would seem to differ from Obama's much publicized statements that he was not raised in a particularly religious household.

While the word "mengaji" means to either learn or study, however, the actual usage of the word "mengaji" in Indonesian and Malaysian societies means the study of learning to recite the Quran in the Arabic language rather than the native tongue. "Mengagi" is a word and a term that is accorded the highest value and status in the mindset of fundamentalist societies here in Southeast Asia. To put it quite simply, "mengaji classes" are not something that a non practicing or so-called moderate Muslim family would ever send their child to. To put this is perhaps a Christian context, this is something above and beyond simply enrolling your child in Sunday school classes.

The fact that Obama had attended mengaji classes is well known in Indonesia and has left many there wondering just when Obama is going to come out of the closet.

As I've stated before, the evidence seems to quite clearly show that both Ann Dunham and her husband Lolo Soetoro Mangunharjo were in act devout Muslims themselves and they raised their son as such.

In a recent article entitled "Confirmed: Barack Obama practised Islam", Daniel Pipes comes to the conclusion that Obama was an irregularly practicing Muslim who rarely or occasionally prayed with his step-father in a mosque." and "that for some years had a reasonably Muslim upbringing under the auspices of his Indonesian step-father." Needless to say, I will respectfully differ with Daniel Pipes conclusion. So will most Indonesians.

Updates From Southeast Asia

2007-12-29T21:18:00.000+08:00

Recently I've been quite busy with work and as such the frequent posts here have slowed down a bit. For those wondering, yes I'm okay and on top of things, I've just been extremely busy and at the moment Adsense and the small donations I receive from time to time just ain't enough to pay the bills. Remember that your support makes "An American Expat in Southeast Asia" better. Hopefully the day will come when I can afford to dedicate much more time to something that has become not only a labor of love, but one that I consider to be a duty.

I've got several drafts of items to be posted soon and hope to get them up in the near future including the continuation of how Islamic Extremism can be defeated once and for all and how we are, at the moment, heading in the absolute opposite direction in achieving that. A bit cocky sounding on my part you might think. How can someone actually claim to hold the answer on how to defeat Islamic Extremism, but what you will read in the days ahead is how that was actually achieved on a small scale right here. There really is no secret to it and sometimes the answer is right there just waiting to be discovered. Maybe you've noticed the recent absense of people like Adam Yahiye Gadahn. You might be wondering where he is and what happened to him, why his sudden silence, the clues have all been posted here at "An American Expat in Southeast Asia" my friends.

What inspired me to take a break from work and update was the subject of Benazhir Bhutto and Pakistan. The other night I received a call that Bhutto was assassinated. I can't really say that I was shocked or surprised, it was something that was expected, also expected was the blame being placed on Al Qaeda. Interestingly enough at the time I was mulling over how to word a post regarding the recent New York Times article on the billions of US dollars in aid that have been completely wasted in Pakistan. American tax dollars that has been diverted to extremist groups in Pakistan by our "friend" Pervez Musharraf and his pack of Islamist thugs who masquerade themselves as a legitimate government. You might have read the original story here entitled "All Musharraf All The Time" back in June. Unfortunately I don't have the circulation that the New York Times does.

Andrew McCarthy is on the right path when he said that - "Jihadists are not going to be wished away, rule-of-lawed into submission, or democratized out of existence. If you really want democracy and the rule of law in places like Pakistan, you need to kill the jihadists first. Or they’ll kill you, just like, today, they killed Benazir Bhutto."

What Andrew McCarthy left out is that often in our self-perceived vocation as the torch-bearers of freedom and democracy, we tend to lose sight not only of the limited power of politically engineered change in an Islamic country such as Pakistan, but of that simple truism that no society can ever live outside the parameters of its basic ideology. The foremost condition required for democracy to ever take root in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan or any Islamic country for that matter is the acceptance by all of the sovereignty of the people, a concept that runs contrary to the basic ideology of Islam and effectively denies the fundamental Islamic affirmation of the sovereignty of God.