Miss Michigan Rima Fakih, 24, made history this week as the first Arab-American to win the Miss USA competition, here.
The extreme right has gone ballistic –painting Fakih as a mole for Hamas and part of some Islamic threat despite her appearing in a bikini and contradicting most conservative Islamic mores — including new allegations that she won a stripper contest, here.
One commentator put it this way:
It’s a sad day in America but a very predictable one, given the politically correct, Islamo-pandering climate in which we’re mired. The Hezbollah-supporting Shi’ite Muslim, Miss Michigan Rima Fakih–whose bid for the pageant was financed by an Islamic terrorist and immigration fraud perpetrator–won the Miss USA contest. I was on top of this story before anyone, telling you about who Fakih is and her extremist and deadly ties.
Another site laid out how Fakih is prancing around in a bikini to pursue her agenda of imposing strict limitations on women:
Rima Fakih, Miss Michigan USA, who will compete in Sunday Night’s pageant broadcast on NBC, is a Dearbornistan Shi’ite Muslim who is a supporter of Hezbollah and used the pageant name at a forum promoting Islamic subjugation of women. She was born in the Hezbollah stronghold of Srifa in South Lebanon, which Israel was forced to attack in the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah war because it was a site of Hezbollah weaponry. Her devout Muslim family comes from the Hezbollah-controlled South Lebanon. Intelligence sources confirm that at least three of Fakih’s relatives are currently top officials in Hezbollah and that at least eight Fakih family members were Hezbollah terrorists killed by the Israelis in past Israel-Lebanese wars and interventions. Some of her family members were originally in Harakat Amal [the Shi’ite Amal militia], which is now essentially a part of Hezbollah. There’s a reason that even Al-Manar TV–Hezbollah’s official TV network–is high on Fakih in the Miss USA pageant.
It is not clear if it is an Arab conspiracy or a 9-11 Truther conspiracy or some Islamic stripper conspiracy. Then again she could just be a beautiful woman who happens to be Arab-American.
It is a sad commentary on our contemporary politics that an Arab-American cannot simply win such a pageant without unleashing such a torrent of hateful conspiracy theories. I do not even like such pageants but it is astonishing how little it takes to vent such anger and prejudice. Of course, even a scarf on a donut commercial in enough to trigger a national boycott today, here.
Rima Fakih was raised in Dearborn with her parents and her younger brother, Rami. She attended St. John’s Catholic School High Foundation and graduated from the University of Michigan-Dearborn with her Bachelor of Arts in Economics with a minor in Business Administration.
I have no idea (nor do I care) what the views of this woman might be — nor do I see the relevance. The runner-up, Miss Oklahoma, was asked about her views on the controversial Arizona immigration law and said that she supported the law, here. While I believe the reasonable suspicion provision will unleash discriminatory enforcement, I do not look to Miss Oklahoma as a source of legal or policy wisdom.
As with the Prejean controversy, it continues to amaze me that people inject politics (and frankly substance) in this beauty contest. Usually it is an effort to elevate the competition but at times it is an effort to paint the contestants in a darker light. If Hezbollah planned to gain some advantage by winning the Miss USA competition, they are more desperate than I thought. Next they will be targeting the USA Spelling Bee.
“She attended St. John’s Catholic School High Foundation”
Not sure a devout muslim would attend a catholic high school much less parade around in front of cameras half naked, but I could be mistaken.
Does anyone think an individual affiliated with Hamas would parade around half-naked in a bikini for millions to see? That action alone probably resulted in some Hamas-associated cleric issuing a fatwa calling for her death.
Please understand, everyone, that the vast majority of us right-of-center folk cringe at this kind of thing. Same as the yahoos screaming that “Machete” is designed to cause a race war… listen closely and you’ll hear a loud “ugh!” coming from the mainstream right.
Guilt by association is so lame. Of course this will be making its way through the left-wing blogosphere as an example of how horrible and hateful all conservatives are, just like the behavior of nuts on the left toward Carrie Prejean was used to tar everyone on the left. A few commenters, mainly on sites no one has ever heard of, make some ridiculous accusations. So f’ing what? All it proves is that there are idiots out there. This is no more indicative of the “right” than Markos “There isn’t a jew I don’t hate” Moulitsas’s cheering of the deaths of American citizens in Iraq is indicative of the left.
I agree with this article, but in fairness, Mr. Turley, it was the judge, not the contestants (and not the reactionaries) who injected politics into this pageant.
@BARRY SHAPIRO:
Your caps lock key seems to be jammed.
IF THERE IS ANY QUESTION AS TO THE NEW MISS USA’S SUPPORT OF, OR ANY CONNECTION TO THE TERRORIST GROUP HEZBOLLAH WHY NOT ASK HER OUTRIGHT WHAT HER VIEWS ARE ON THE SUBJECT. AFTER ALL, IF SHE PUBLICLY DENOUNCES THE TERRORIST ORGANIZATION, THIS SHOULD DISTLL ANY DOUBTS THAT THIS NEW ROLE MODEL FOR MILLIONS OF YOUNG GIRLS AN WOMEN HAS. IF SHE REFUSES TO DENOUNCE HEZBOLLAH, OR THEIR TERRORIST WAYS, THEN SERIOUS QUESTIONS AS TO WHERE THIS WOMEN’S LOYALTIES LIE SHOULD BE BROUGHT INTO QUESTION AND HER WEARING THE CROWN SHOULD BE RECONSIDERED.
vlf
I think you may have been right in both posts.
Would many of these right wing nut jobs also be fundamentalist christians I wonder?
Also would she not also be getting the same torrent of hatred and abuse from fundamentalists of the religeon that she is accused of being a one woman sleeper cell for?
I think I can see a pattern emerging…..
Oops! “like seeking the HELP they need …”
Well, now that I think about it, they could probably use a little “hemp” as well – would mellow them WAY out.
Sigh. This is what happens when you have entirely too much time on your hands, and have absolutely nothing better to do.
These right wingnuts really ought to find something to occupy their time, like seeking the hemp they need for their obvious mental deficiencies.
I’m curious as to the conspiracy nuts’ view of the end game of the operation–So a mole wins the Miss USA title and then?
‘The 24-year-old brunette from Michigan beat out four blondes and 46 other women for the 2010 Miss USA title after nearly stumbling in her evening gown.’
yesssssssssss!
..so we can FINALLY put to rest that silly belief that blondes have more fun!………..
[ hehehhehe…’cause they don’t;)]
When you’re Hot you’re HOT…
Rima-Rima-Rimalangadingdong.
While I find pageants themselves about as interesting as cattle auctions (and a good deal similar), I stand in figurative awe at the sheer amount of xenophobes the right musters every time any ethnic group succeeds.
Come on man she is beautiful. Leave her alone. I doubt that they could attack the…… Ok, again this is just BULL SHIT.