There’s a rather telling detail in a piece in Politico on the reactions of Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton to the attacks on 9/11.
In a television interview only a few hours after the twin towers collapsed in flames, Trump managed to work in a strange little boast about his real-estate empire:
“40 Wall Street,” he said, referring to his 71-story building blocks away from the now-collapsed twin towers, “actually was the second-tallest building in downtown Manhattan … And now it’s the tallest.”
Trump will always be Trump, I guess.
But the Politico story does note that aside from this little bit of brand-building, Trump was actually rather restrained in his response that day, at least by normal Trumpian standards:
A decade and a half before pledging to “bomb the shit out of” ISIS and proposing a deportation force and a Muslim ban, Trump didn’t talk about retribution or leap to conclusions about who was responsible. In fact, he avoided identifying potential enemies—any terrorist organization or Muslims in general.
We live in what is, in many ways, a much uglier America today, and Trump has been one of the leading enablers of this ugliness.
As Mic noted in a post yesterday, Islamophobia is much worse today than it was on 9/11/2001, and hate crimes against Muslims are on the upswing.
Immediately after 9/11, there was a significant rise in anti-Muslim activity.According to the FBI, in 2001 anti-Islamic hate crimes spiked by 1,600 percent with 481 incidents. CAIR noted another surge in 2006 — the reason for it remains unclear. Another spike followed the Park51 controversy in 2010, in which New York City considered building a Muslim community center and mosque near Ground Zero.
But the highest concentration of anti-Muslim crimes came at the end of 2015. According to CAIR’s latest report, 78 mosques were targeted for vandalism that year — more incidents than they had documented in any one year since they started tracking in 2009. Compare this to 2014, when CAIR only documented 22 similar incidents, or 2013, when they documented 20. The 2015 spike came after the attacks at the Charlie Hebdo headquarters in Paris and around the same time Donald Trump infamously proposed that the country should ban Muslims from entering until we “figure out what’s going on.”
Similarly, the Southern Poverty Law Center found that in 2014 while the rate of hate crimes overall had fallen compared with the previous year, hate crimes against Muslims saw a 14 percent increase.
Emphasis mine.
The vicious attacks against Muslims have continued apace this year. The latest: an attack on two Muslim mothers in Brooklyn last Thursday. The New York Daily News reports:
A bigoted Brooklyn woman launched a sickening attack on two Muslim women pushing their babies in strollers — punching them in the face and trying to pull off their hijabs, prosecutors said Friday.
Emirjeta Xhelili, 32, hurled Islamophobic insults as she pounced on the two victims near her Bath Beach home about 1:30 p.m. Thursday, authorities said.
“Get the f–k out of here,” Xhelili, 32, allegedly yelled at the pair, according to prosecutors. “Get the f–k out of America, b—–s.” …
Brooklyn prosecutors said her attack included an attempt to knock over a stroller carrying a 15-month-old baby.
Happily, the baby (and both mothers) are ok, and Xhelili was quickly arrested.
The alleged attacker is, of course, a Trump supporter. The Daily News notes that
Her vile social media musings include several bizarre tweets cheering the candidacy of Donald Trump.
“America is the ark of Noah,” one reads. “Trump’s gonna win.”
Such is life in America fifteen years after 9/11.
H/T — Raw Story/Liberaland for highlighting the Trump quote.
@PoM, whaddya figure, electrical engineer that works on PLCs? Not quite wordy enough, I think.
@Lea
I was just using that number as an example of the kind of ridiculous claims that people who work for minimum wage make as to what they think an acceptable wage should be. I’m not far off, to my knowledge some states in the US allow for a $24 an hour minimum wage, which is patently nonsense.
This is Mig’s best impression of what he thinks a smart, self-assured person sounds like.
Mig, you were asked questions by your fellow scientists. (Why does that sound like Rick from The Walking Dead in my head? Sci-en-tist) Since the rest of us are so beneath you, one would think youd be eager to answer them.
We’re waiting.
For a moment i thought the two trolls were going to fight, and i was all
http://www.reactiongifs.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/excited3.gif
Then they didn’t…
http://reactiongifs.me/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/doctor-who-rain-sad.gif
Sure Mig. That is totally a thing someone would do and not at all a lie.
Talk engineering to me, @Mig. Since you’ve decided that your engineering chops are what’s important here, let’s hear it! Go ahead, brag – you’ve said that you like to. We’re all ears.
Just fuck off already. Go Your Own Way to your subreddit and complain about the evil lazy jobless feminazis there. I’d like to go back to a meaningful discussion without having to deal with your shit.
Go play in your room, the adults are talking.
@Weatherwax
I wish I was good enough to get published. For now I cower under the lyrics of Rigamortis and how much wordplay is in that piece.
@All that Tripping and Stumbling
Oh my stars poor MGTOW,
Uttering bitter words,
Of meritocracy.
Did you think we’re spacey?
Or only squack like birds?
That we’d bow to your brow?
You should know better than that.
Please be ready for a spat.
A troll in hot red anger
On the words of a stranger
Is all but a silly brat.
Do you want to live?
Those on low wages do too.
Have some sympathy.
@TOWIE
http://i.imgur.com/xMjoH2G.gif
ETA I’m so pleased that worked!
I’m just here to laugh at “All That Migging & Towing” as he throws a tantrum, raging impotently in a comment section.
He’s ranting like he’s some misunderstood tormented genius crying about “the sheep.” It’s hilarious.
“I’m so much better than you losers! I’m an engineer!”
I’m a personal injury lawyer. Who cares here? No one.
Now stop acting like a spoiled brat. It’s past your bedtime.
Oh, myyyy, getting crowded in here!
It’s a troll party!
http://i.ebayimg.com/images/g/MZcAAOSwBLlU5jXq/s-l300.jpg
@paradoxical intention
The amount of abuse that Sikhs, Jews and Christains who wear head scarves get based on that someone thinks they are muslim really shows how ignorant these people are. If they knew enough about islam to actually recognise a muslim person chances are they wouldn’t be discriminating against them in the first place.
But i guess learning about other cultures is white genocide or some bullshit.
@Scildfreja
That would be so boring and predictable. You’re probably correct.
Civil engineering is the best, though. I may be biased because I work with civil engineers occasionally, but they do good work and it’s difficult shit.
@You fucking people
There is nothing wrong with being an electrical engineer. Nothing. At. All. You think that’s not good enough or something? Well, whoopdeefuckingdo, I’m sure all of you are su USEFUL and PRODUCTIVE.
@Scildfreja
I am no more willing to talk engineering with you than I am willing to talk finances with an iguana. I don’t have to tell you anything.
Ooglyboggles,
You should be published.
Yep, a child pretending to be a respectable professional on the Internet, betrayed when his bluff was called.
Nailed it
@Lea
Engineers are not scientists, stupid. They apply knowledge obtained from the sciences.
Of all the recent trolls, this one is the best.
Hark at TOWIE with his big words and clever knowledge. Bless!
I just wanna pin a little ribbon on him.
Incidentally, I’d rather talk finances with an iguana than talk anything with you. Nope, you don’t have to tell us anything, but then why bring it up ?
Now, if you’re done throwing unwarranted abuse at everyone, you may see yourself out.
Is it that time of year again? When trolls are out in force trying to ruining discussions and stuff.
I work with electrical engieers on the ships. Many have other qualifications besides and very skilled too. They certainly don’t seem like the type to bitch and moan on the Internet like this giftless fool.
@MIG: thanks! I am pretty useful actually, i have a bunch of skills that have helped to make me pretty indispensable at work. Well, until i get on typing up that wiki… i may have not thought this through…
Also, it’s super hilarious how defensive you get when you feel your profession is being criticised. Perhaps you can imagine how the rest of us might feel?
I mean, if we cared.
Welp, that sure was predictable!
@Mig, are you sure it’s us far-left-pinko-commies who are seeing the world in black and white, unable to see shades of grey? You’re the one who came in here, said that bigots were A-OK, declared your obvious biases, and then when confronted with them decided to throw a grade-A tantrum about how smart you are.
At the beginning you even asked me for references to straightforward and common biases, as if you didn’t know the first thing about doing your own research! It’s common enough to have big Wikipedia articles! Honestly, anyone who’s done actual schooling and earned themselves a degree knows how to do their own research, especially something so blatantly pedestrian as cognitive biases. Either you earned your Engineering degree from the University of Butt, or you’ve forgotten the very foundation of your field, sober research. Measure twice and cut once, dingus.
You’re a Coprolithic Engineer, aren’t you?