UC Irvine Muslim Student Union Suspended for 2010-2011 School Year

It's finally happened.

Read all about it here.

The MSU released a statement over their club listserv bemoaning the decision because it would "deprive current and incoming Muslim students" of a cohesive Muslim community and all that nonsense.

Their leadership should have taken that into consideration before they risked their entire club to shut up the Israeli ambassador. Now they're paying for it; if the Muslim community in Irvine is pissed, they should be pissed at the MSU leadership who organized this thing.

Pushing Back Against UC Irvine's MSU

Finally. Someone is pushing back against the Muslim Student Union at UC Irvine.

Check out the article here at Pajamas Media.

Evidence That MSU Planned to Disrupt Ambassador Oren

Big news.

This recent article by Investigative Project on Terrorism just came out detailing a string of e-mails anonymously sent to UCI admin and law enforcement. The e-mails spell out in detail a painstakingly orchestrated plan to disrupt Ambassador Oren when he came to UCI on Feb 8th. UCI admin and police are currently working to check on the authenticity of the letters.

I'm not holding my breath to see the MSU get what they deserve- even in the face of this evidence. Still, let's give it time. Maybe UCI will finally surprise us.

Psychology of the MSU

This is an article I recently wrote exploring the psychology of the Muslim Student Union- your typical anti-Israel activist, as well.

By no means am I saying that's all there is to them. I may even do another piece exploring their mindset further. It was kind of a fun project, putting myself in their shoes. If a little freaky.

One correction I wish I had made before submitting it for publication...

I'm not 100% sure about the "defend, don't attack" method I espouse. I based it primarily on hearing what the common, uninvolved UCI student feels about the political tension on campus.

What I should have said: if rallying, protesting, organizing, etc. against Islamic extremism or related topics, do not organize "against" it. Rather, organize "for" something.

Organize for women's rights, gay rights, religious minority rights, etc. in the Muslim world.

Show that you're supporting something, rather than demonizing something else. People always, always, always respond better to a positive message than a negative one.

Why am I still up at this hour?

Pajamas Media Premiere

Here is a Pajamas Media exclusive, courtesy of yours truly. It covers the violations of Muslim Student Union at UC Irvine, specifically their most recent Hate Week this past May.

Also, have some Itzhak Pearlman. It's enough to bring tears to your eyes.

Muslim Student Union's Co-sponsors Withdraw From Anti-Israel Week

5 UC Irvine campus organizations withdrew their co-sponsorship from the MSU's anti-Israel week. Have a look-see at a campus paper article covering the matter, courtesy of yours truly.

CAMERA on the Muslim Student Union

CAMERA (Committe for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America) is a very respected organization dedicated to monitoring, as you can guess, media and news concerned with the Middle East. They keep their eyes open for bias and falsities in the media.

They've provided me with some interesting analysis on UCI's Muslim Student Union's frequent choice of media.

Enjoy.

Anna Baltzer

Occupation 101

Here We Go Again

Muslim Student Union respect for Judaism

Every May, the Musim Student Union (a.k.a Muslim Student Association) on UC Irvine's campus hosts a week of anti-Israel events. Last year they had the audacity to name it the "Palestinian Holocaust", and spit in the face of very Zionist and Jewish student on campus by ripping holes in an Israeli flag, spattering it with red paint, and singwing it with fire (not pictured above). Their anti-Israel week is infamous for inviting virulently anti-Semitic and slanderous speakers such as the always-amusing Norman Finkelstein and Jew-hating Malik Ali.

While this year is looking to be fairly weak (only 5 events spread out over the entire month of May), the MSU is flaunting a list of co-sponsors, many of which have no business supporting a Muslim-run event. Here's the list:

***Afrikan Student Union
***Alpha Epsilon Omega ®
***Armenian Student Association
***Asian Pacific Student Association
***Hindu Student Council
***Hip Hop Congress
***Pakistani Student Association
***Society of Arab Students
***Sikh Student Association
***The Agora
***Radical Student Union
***Vietnamese Action Committee
***Young Americans for Liberty
***Workers Student Alliance


Hindu Student Council? Hip Hop Congress? Young Americans for Liberty? Do these people know the cesspool they're jumping into? I thought Hindus would have learned something from the Mumbai terror attack. I guess not.

I have a feeling that before this event of half-truths and contorted facts begin, a lot of those groups will have decided to remove themselves from that list.

EDIT: Case in point, president of The Agora, Oren Klein, has already posted a short letter to the MSU regarding his wish to withdraw The Agora from their list of co-sponsors. He writes:

As the President of The Agora, I politely ask you to remove us as a sponsoring organization.

We do not condone partisan support. We support open dialogue and communication of all parties and refrain from choosing sides. We encourage your group to consider including an open public forum and debate, of which we certainly support.

I am in favor of the cause of freedom, and truly believe that the situation can be resolved peacefully. Though educating our students on worldwide issues is a number one priority of The Agora, addressing the issue from an antagonistic and xenophobic perspective is counterproductive and ferments conflict.

We encourage your organization to work towards mediation and communication, understanding and cooperation, and would like to learn more about the history of genocide; including the current crisis in Darfur, the past Armenian genocide, and the Nazi extermination camps alongside the Palestinian cause.

Peace not pieces!
Oren

Good on you, Oren. Thank you for standing up for the true nature of peace and fair dialogue.