Ian S. Thompson – 12/31/06

This page was last updated on January 3, 2007.

What America is all about; Ian S. Thompson; Beaver County Times; December 31, 2006.

As background, Mr. Thompson began writing letters as a Penn State student. His fields of study were English and international politics and he graduated in 2005 with a B.A. in International Politics. In letters to the Penn State Daily Collegian, Mr. Thompson identified himself as the political director of Allies, a PSU organization now known as SpeakOut. The mission statement of SpeakOut reads, “Works to organize the family, friends, supporters and members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and ally (LGBTA) community at PSU and is committed to a safe and social network open to all students, political and social education, and to increasing visibility and fostering a positive climate for LGBTA students at PSU.” When he “signed” an anti-landmine “treaty” on the web, Mr. Thompson indicated he was a member of Amnesty International.

If you’ve read Mr. Thompson’s letters since at least mid-2004, you know he’s a full-blown socialist (“a proud progressive” in his own words from 2003) who tends to resort to name-calling and unsupported talking points.

Below is a detailed critique of the subject letter.

“In response to the Dec. 26 editorials ‘Selling fear’ and ‘Trading places:’”

[RWC] My critiques of these editorials are here and here.

“The bigoted comments of U.S. Rep. Virgil Goode, R-Va., about the desire of U.S. Rep. Ellison, D-Minn., the first Muslim elected to serve in Congress, to use the Quran [sic] at his ceremonial swearing-in next month is fear-mongering of the worst sort.”

[RWC] I know I’m nitpicking, but when Mr. Thompson wrote his letter and on the day it was published, Mr. Ellison was not yet a U.S. representative. Members-elect won’t be sworn in until January 4^th.

Were Rep. Goode’s comments bigoted? You decide. When on December 24^th Mr. Ellison told a Dearborn convention of the Muslim American Society and the Islamic Circle of North America, “How do you know that Allah, subhanahu wa ta’ala [praised and exalted is he], did not bring you here so that you could understand how to teach people what tolerance was, what justice was? How do you know that you’re not here to teach this country?”, was that any less “bigoted?” While none of us are angels, given the recent history of Islam, what can Muslims of Middle Eastern descent teach us about “tolerance” and “justice?”

Assuming Mr. Ellison doesn’t practice the “accept Islam or die” version of Islam – and I have no reason to believe he does, I believe his politics are more of a concern than the fact he’s a Sunni Muslim. That said, Mr. Ellison has been an apologist for Louis Farrakhan.

There’s also another point to consider regarding Islam. In addition to being a religion, it is also an economic, political, and social ideology. This makes it difficult to engage in discussions of Islam because any criticism of the economic, political, and social aspects cause Muslims and the politically correct label it religion bashing. Indeed, it’s politically incorrect even to discuss the possibility that the economic, political, and social aspects of Islam as described in the Koran are incompatible with modern western democracies.

I get a kick out of it when folks like Mr. Thompson and the Times editorial board accuse people of fear mongering when it comes to Muslims. What’s most responsible for fear mongering are the actions of Muslims themselves, whether it’s Islamofascists or the alleged “silent majority” of Muslims who don’t appear to do enough to purge the extremists from their midst.

“Despite the obvious wishes of Goode and others on the fringes, America is not a Christian country. While a majority of the people who live here are indeed Christians, we are fortunate to live in a country where everyone is free to practice the religion of their own choosing, or none at all if that is their desire.

“Something as personal and important to someone’s identity as faith should never be dictated by a majority-rules system.”

[RWC] Hmm, I guess I heard/read different comments from Rep. Goode. While I cringed when I heard Rep. Goode’s comments, at no point did I hear him wish the U.S. was a country governed by a religion.

“Our religious pluralism has been a source of strength for this country since our founding. Simply take a look around the world at places where one religious viewpoint dominates over government policies or minority religions are oppressed.”

[RWC] What “religious pluralism?” While I guess that’s technically correct, it doesn’t really describe our demographics. As of 2001, Christians made up roughly 80% of the population. It was about 89% in 1990. Though I didn’t do a check, I suspect it’s safe to say the figure was nearly 100% at times in our history. The 1990-2001 drop was primarily the result of an increase in atheists (atheism itself is a religion) and agnostics.

Using Mr. Thompson’s definition of “religious pluralism,” do countries run by Islamic law – as Iran – exhibit “religious pluralism” because not all inhabitants are of a single religion?

“These are the places in the world where violence and suffering are the greatest. It is precisely for these reasons that our founders established a country where religion would be left to the individual instead of the government.

“Ellison has as much right to place his hand on the Quran [sic] as Goode does the Bible. Similarly, another person should enjoy the right not to have to place their hand on any religious work.”

[RWC] Mr. Thompson should know the official U.S. swearing-in ceremony doesn’t use any book. House members simply recite the oath as a group.

“This is what America is. It is our strength. It is who we are.”

[RWC] This letter is an example of the importance of context and history. If you hadn’t read or forgot about Mr. Thompson’s previous letters, you might be led to accept this letter at face value.

I have my doubts because in at least three letters (here, here, and here), Mr. Thompson took shots at what he calls the “religious right” and the “fundamentalist Christian-right.” Given Mr. Thompson’s history, I suspect this is just another letter written because he felt obligated to defend a fellow traveler (Mr. Ellison) and the situation presented an opportunity to be politically correct. Had Mr. Ellison been a Republican and Mr. Goode a Democrat, I doubt we’d have seen this letter.