by Lady Liberty
03/23/2003

On March 1, an Ohio Congresswoman made comments in an interview with a local newspaper that, within twenty-four hours of publication, caused a nationwide uproar. Marcy Kaptur, a Democrat from Ohio's 9th House District, a vocal opponent of a war with Iraq, compared Osama bin Laden with America's Founding Fathers, and went on to call terrorism "acts of sacred piety". Since her remarks were first widely publicized, the Democratic contingent in Washington has been silent, and Ms. Kaptur herself has not apologized or tried to explain herself but has said merely that Republicans are taking her words "out of context".

Ms. Kaptur has not said that she was misquoted in The Toledo Blade, so it seems reasonable to assume that statements credited to her there represent her actual comments. Among them were these words: "One could say that Osama bin Laden and these non-nation-state fighters with religious purpose are very similar to those kind of atypical revolutionaries that helped to cast off the British crown."

Similar in what way? Is there some facet of history of which we are blithely unaware that tells the story of George Washington setting off explosive kegs of gunpowder beneath buildings in which innocent civilians were gathered? Did historians somehow neglect to record the tale of Thomas Jefferson poisoning the water supplies of towns or villages where the enemy was congregated? Did witnesses who wrote of the acts of Benjamin Franklin and Patrick Henry selectively censor those times the two summarily executed those who didn't agree with their own religious mores? Surely Ms. Kaptur can't mean to say that bin Laden and his men are freedom fighters. In any territory held by these Islamic extremists, liberty outside the narrowist of religious strictures is the first casualty.

Marcy Kaptur also said, "I think that people of faith understand that for many of the terrorists, their actions are acts of sacred piety to the point of losing their lives. And I think that people of faith understand that there is a heavy religious overtone to the opposition." In fact, Ms. Kaptur herself claims to be a devout Catholic. But faith, devout or otherwise, is unnecessary for understanding what the enemy's motivations are in the case of Mid-Eastern terrorism. Of course it's religious at its most basic root.. But attributing such a thing to mere faith, and referring to suicide attacks as acts of sacred piety, is akin to excusing the torture and murders of the Spanish Inquisition as a bit of overzealousness in the application of Catholic doctrine. Urging an understanding of this kind of fanatacism - and implying that those with faith ought to be able to do so - is to say that such actions can be understood. Once understood, they become excusable. Can Ms. Kaptur possibly mean to say that, under any circumstances, the unprovoked slaughter of thousands of innocents is understandable?

Among other remarks, the Congresswoman also likened groups of terrorists to Ethan Allen and his Green Mountain Boys, a revolutionary fighting group based in Vermont. What she apparently doesn't know is that Ethan Allen repudiated organized religion. And what she seems to conveniently have forgotten is that neither Allen nor his Green Mountain Boys spent any time or wasted any resources on civilian targets, unlike the al Qaeda terrorists who actually focus on civilian targets.

So what would make Ms. Kaptur say such things? There are several possible explanations for her remarks.

Maybe she's stupid. But probably she's not. She has a respectable higher education, and has been in national-level politics for over twenty years.

It could be that she's ignorant. But again, that's not likely to be the case. Her years in Congress have doubtless made her privy to a great deal of information, much of which is probably related, or pertains directly, to national security issues. And national security issues have included matters involving the Middle East for much longer than she's been in office. It's possible that she doesn't know much about American History, although that's doubtful as well. Her statements were made concerning very well known men and events from the Revolutionary era, and these are things that are reasonably well covered from the elementary school level onward.

Perhaps Ms. Kaptur is a socialist. Well, she definitely has socialist leanings. That's part and parcel of why she's been popular in a strongly unionized town (Toledo). But socialism doesn't urge genocide or encourage forced religious conversions to meet its ends, nor does it demand other than increased taxes and a government which takes care of its citizens' every need. Socialism isn't a good thing, but it's not terrorism, either.

The mostly likely reason the Congresswoman spoke as she did is because she doesn't like America or its policies a whole lot more than do the terrorists. She seems to think that, although all the dead people are a very bad thing, the terrorists themselves have a valid point to make. And that maybe if we just listen really hard and try our best to be understanding, we can move past the bombs and the crashed airplanes and the threat of chemical or biological weaponry, and just all get along. Ms. Kaptur is a globalist at heart who thinks the United States is no better - and quite a bit worse in some ways - than the other nations of the world.

On the other hand, maybe she really is just stupid. Northwest Ohio voters, take note.

UPDATE: In an article published March 15, 2003 in The Toledo Blade, Ms. Kaptur's speech at a local VFW fish fry included what was billed as an apology. In reality, she didn't say she was sorry for her remarks, but that she was sorry if, do to the political nature and the "twisting" of her words, anyone had been hurt. Meanwhile, in an incident lending further credence to the notion that Democrats care about political correctness and politically correct politics but disdain the Constitution itself, a Congressman (James Moran (D-VA) lost his minority leadership posistion and has been roundly castigated for making some comments that have been construed as negative about Jews. There's still been no real condemnation of Kaptur, however, by Democrats. While Moran's comments were arguably not only incorrect but in poor taste and deserve censure, the silence surrounding Kaptur's words from Democrat circles is deafening.

Lady Liberty
March 11, 2003