Progressive Democrat Issue 56: FIGHTING BACK AGAINST RELIGIOUS EXTREMISM

The Rightwing war on reality is a real war and there are casualties. From the Lawrence Journal-World:

Paul Mirecki, the Kansas University professor who's under fire for a verbal outlash against Christian fundamentalists, was treated at a hospital for injuries this morning after being beaten by two men on a roadside in rural Douglas County.

It wasn't immediately clear if the beating had anything to do with the controversy that has propelled Mirecki into the headlines in recent days.

But reached by his cell phone this afternoon, Mirecki said he'd never met the two men who beat him.

"I didn't know them, but I'm sure they knew me," he said. "I was on the way to breakfast and a bad situation developed."

Later it became clearer that the attackers had targeted him for his beliefs. In short, religious extremists (terrorists?) attacked a renowned professor for his support of science. This is what Bush America is coming to.

But it gets worse. This professor, a victim of a beating due to his beliefs, was forced to resign as head of the Religious Studies Department of the University of Kansas. This is insane! There is a genuine crusade, led by religious extremists, against reason. This nation was founded by REASON, not fanaticism. Bush is bringing fanaticism into our nation and it is up to people like us to stop it.

I am pissed. The right wing attacks on science are becoming insane! And we have to fight back and fight back on their turf. In the name of Professor Mirecki of the University of Kansas, I declare war on the right wing extremists of Kansas. THis is not a war against Kansas in general or even conservatives in Kansas. But on the extremists. What follows are a series of groups I am asking you to support. At the end is a repeat call for an all out campaign to get Ann Coulter, terrorism advocate, fired because of her statements that inspire people to make assaults like the one on Mirecki. Even if you can't donate to any of these groups, please fight to get terrorism advocate Ann Coulter fired. Here are ideas of how we can fight:

Donate in Mirecki's honor to Americans United for the Separation of Church and State. This started on Daily Kos, but I think it is time to make it a bigger movement. Americans United is one of the biggest groups fighting the breakdown of the wall our Founding Fathers set up between Church and State.

Donate to the National Center for Science Education, the number one group defending the teaching of evolution in our schools. This group fills the shoes of "Darwin's Bulldog" today and the assault, both physical and professional, against Mirecki shows how much we need a Huxley today.

Support the Progressive Caucus of the Democratic Party of Kansas. Let's give progressives in Kansas the political power to be heard.

Help out the People for the American Way of Kansas. PFAW is one of the formost groups fighting right wing extremism in general. I am glad they are in Kansas fighting on the front lines against extremism.

Help Act Blue Activate Kansas bringing the state party the resources to do in Kansas what populist Democrats did in Montana. This Act Blue strategy of focusing on each state on the state level is a great grassroots part of Dean's 50 state strategy. Let's make sure Kansas is on the list. Join me in donating to Act Blue's Activate Kansas fund.

And then there is the ultimate in grassroots: Support Democracy for America, Kansas. Again, I am so glad to see that DFA, like PFAW, is in Kansas. It is dumb to leave any state out of our strategy and Kansas needs to be one of our front line battlegrounds.

But there is one more thing, and this relates to the terrorism advocate Ann Coulter. Mere days before the attack, this is what Ann Coulter (the same woman who said that the WTC bombers should have bombed the NY Times building) said an interview she had with Bill O'Rilley (the terrorist advocate who called for the bombing of San Francisco): (from Media Matters)

[Coulter] complained that several conservative pundits have security details when going to speak at college campuses and stated, "No liberal has to have security. Though I'd like to change that." She also claimed, "I think what mostly encourages violence is [liberals'] incapacity to formulate an argument." As Media Matters has documented, Coulter has said, "I think a baseball bat is the most effective way these days" to talk to liberals.

Ann Coulter is advocating that people attack you and me with baseball bats. And someone seems to have taken her up on that and attacked Paul Mirecki. Ann Coulter has called for beating up liberals and for bombing the NY Times building. And yet she is still considered a major pundit by the Mainstream Media! COMPLAIN! This is a woman who advocates bombing NYC and beating up liberals and people are LISTENING to her.

Contact her employers at United Press:

Tobin Beck, Executive Editor United Press International: tbeck@upi.com
Letters to the editor: Phone: (202) 898-8000
Fax: (202) 898-8057
Address: 1510 H St NW 6th Fl Washington, DC 20005

CNN frequently picks up her columns and has her as a guest on shows. Please complain to them telling them that they are allowing this woman to advocate hate crimes and terrorism.

MSNBC also brings her on a lot. Complain to them as well:
viewerservices@msnbc.com


Since when is it considered acceptable for the mainstreet media to air calls for bombing and beating Americans? Yet that is what Ann Coulter does.