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Oh, Enough with Dean and the Kaffiyeh

Jan 22, 2004 11:29 AM
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update Allahpundit posits that it's not just any old kaffiyeh, but one very similar to Arafat's style (see comments). Same colors, same pattern. (Many are solid white or white-and-red; patterns are diverse.)

I'm not a fan of Howard Dean and I wish he was more pro-Israel, but the insinuations based on this photo of him wearing a Palestinian-style headscarf on his shoulders are retarded.

OK, Allahpundit's hyperbole is amusing.

But let's say Dean put on a yarmulke that someone handed to him, and then bloggers said this was a sign of his Zionist extremism. We'd call them paranoid anti-Semites, and rightfully so.

Similarly, I think much of the commentary on Dean's wearing a kaffiyeh Islamophobic, anti-Arab bigotry. Period.


Comments: Oh, Enough with Dean and the Kaffiyeh

Joe--If it had been any old kaffiyeh, I'd agree with you. It wasn't. Compare the distinctive pattern on Dean's:

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/040120/480/pcs11201200446

To the distinctive pattern that's become you-know-who's trademark:

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/040120/481/nn10301201230

That's why I made a "Dean joins Fatah" joke in an earlier post.

Posted by: Allah on January 22, 2004 12:27 PM | permalink

I don't know... Did you know that Dean's wife is Jewish? He's also letting his children be raised as Jews. I doubt that he would be anti-Semetic at all.

Heh, I've read a story recently about the campaign having a Jew (Lieberman), Half-Jew (Clark), Quarter-Jew (Kerry), and Wannabe-Jew (Dean).

Posted by: O'dell on January 22, 2004 3:36 PM | permalink

Oh yeah, anti-Zionism isn't anti-Semitism, please don't confuse the two. (extreme) Examples:

*Someone who hates Jews, but hates Arabs more so. They can be anti-Semetic, but pro-Zionist in this case.

*Jews who believe in giving up land as a means for peace with Arabs.

Posted by: O'dell on January 24, 2004 8:28 PM | permalink

I don't think your latter definition, "Jews who believe in giving up land as a means for peace with Arabs" is called anti-Zionist by anyone outside the fringe. Even Ariel Sharon (at least verbally) supports the principle of transferring land from Israeli to Palestinian control.

Posted by: Joe Grossberg on January 25, 2004 2:50 PM | permalink

No more comments! Either someone has violated Godwin's Law, I'm tired of the discussion or, most likely, the ten-week window has closed. You can, however, contact me through email.