Update: Well, it would help if I actually included the cartoon I meant to, toward the end! So that is fixed.
Also Bill Schmalfeldt has demonstrated his deep commitment to freedom of speech by temporarily gulaging several posts where I played clips from his radio show where he threatened myself, John Hoge, Lee Stranahan and Los Angeles Deputy District Attorney Patrick Frey. It not only demonstrates his deep committment to freedom of speech, but also it proves that he has nothing to hide, right? (Note: I am being sarcastic. I admit it is not always obvious.)
I am presently working it out with Blogger, and if they don't re-post it, we will find a new home for the information. Sooner or later, Team Kimberlin will understand what the Streisand Effect is.
By the way, Schmalfeldt might want to look up Md. Criminal Law Code §9-305 dealing with intimidation of a potential witness. It is a misdemeanor, but it carries a potential punishment of five years in prison. Because Maryland has a cockamamie definition of “misdemeanor.” And for that matter, he might want to examine the rules on destruction of evidence.
We now resume the original post, as is.
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Of course you might think this is about his successful YouTube gulaging of my account. By the way, one fan has helpfully re-uploaded the video Kimberlin wants to keep you from seeing the most, here:
Also Bill Schmalfeldt has demonstrated his deep commitment to freedom of speech by temporarily gulaging several posts where I played clips from his radio show where he threatened myself, John Hoge, Lee Stranahan and Los Angeles Deputy District Attorney Patrick Frey. It not only demonstrates his deep committment to freedom of speech, but also it proves that he has nothing to hide, right? (Note: I am being sarcastic. I admit it is not always obvious.)
I am presently working it out with Blogger, and if they don't re-post it, we will find a new home for the information. Sooner or later, Team Kimberlin will understand what the Streisand Effect is.
By the way, Schmalfeldt might want to look up Md. Criminal Law Code §9-305 dealing with intimidation of a potential witness. It is a misdemeanor, but it carries a potential punishment of five years in prison. Because Maryland has a cockamamie definition of “misdemeanor.” And for that matter, he might want to examine the rules on destruction of evidence.
We now resume the original post, as is.
------------------------------------
Of course you might think this is about his successful YouTube gulaging of my account. By the way, one fan has helpfully re-uploaded the video Kimberlin wants to keep you from seeing the most, here:
Share it far and wide, friends!
But rather than talk about his gulaging, I wanted to share with you when he decided to fisk my Mission Statement on for my blog Everyone Draw Mohammed. Since then I took it private and then bizarrely google literally deleted everything from it and I have never found out why. It couldn’t be over offensive material, because they didn’t do anything like that during the Everyone Draw Mohammed day movement itself, so... maybe it was a function of being private and inactive for a few months? Who knows?
But Schmalfeldt had the screencaps (where did he get that, by the way?) and so now I can restore what I said. So thanks for that! I really was sad that I lost the copy of it and I am glad to have it back (mostly)! And except for a few minor typos being corrected I will present it to you as it was, even as events have made some of what I said inaccurate:
Mission Statement
Freedom of speech is at state here, don’t you all see? If anything, we should all make cartoons of Mohammed and show the terrorists and the extremists we are united in the belief that every person has a right to say what they want. Look people, it’s been really easy for us to stand up for free speech lately. For the past few decades, we haven’t had to risk anything to defend it. One of those times is right now. And if we aren’t willing to risk what we have now, then we just believe in free speech, but won’t defend it.
--Dialogue from South Park
It is time for we the people to fight for freedom of speech.
Freedom of speech has been under attack much of my life. It started with Salman Rushdie. He dared to write a book in which a fictional character said something bad about Mohammed, and for that they put out a fatwah, a decree that he should be murdered. And many people died bravely to bring that book to market. It continued when Theo Van Gogh made a movie critiquing how Islamic culture treated women. They killed him for that. Then the Danish created cartoons and we didn’t stand with them. Finally, South Park made a two part episode in which they took on the controversy and Comedy Central censored the image of Mohammed, explicitly citing the fear of violence. And for their 200thand 201st episodes, the guys at South Park did it again, and under threat from a bunch of idiots called Revolution Islam, Comedy Central censored them again. They even censored a speech about the need for courage.
This has got to stop. Someone has to stand up for freedom of speech.
In this the government has failed us. How is it that Revolution Islam is allowed to threaten these people’s lives, and to extort them into silence, and walk around as free men? Many reports say that they didn’t “technically” threaten them, but the law of extortion doesn’t rest on whether you technically say, “do this/don’t do that or we will kill you.” You only have to communicate a threat in language that an ordinary peson would understand to be a threat. Everyone knows they are threatening them. So why isn’t the police in New York beating down their doors?
In every stage of this, the government has failed to protect us. As a generally libertarian guy, this is one of the places where I say that government positively has a role to play—to ensure our freedoms not just by avoiding a violation of our rights, but actively standing between us and anyone who would use violence and threats to take that freedom from us.
So we the people have to step up.
The idea didn’t start here. Indeed, the person who kicked it off changed her mind, or maybe didn’t seriously mean it. But it’s not her decision anymore.
The idea is simple. On May 20, 2010, we will all draw Mohammed cartoons. And if you would like to publish them, cheap and easy, I am here to help.
Ideally, you should give your real name, and maybe the general town in which you live. I’ll start. My name is Aaron Worthing. I live in Manassas, Virginia. And pretty soon I will inflict upon you my artistic skills.
And if you want to publish your creation here, just send it to me. If you can give your real name and town, that would be good. But even just an image would be fine. There is no censorship in this, except you can’t actually be pornographic. But otherwise, be as offensive as you want. And you can include anyone else in the depiction. But, and this is key, you must depict Mohammed in some clear way, preferably with a label. So if you show a picture of a toilet and call it “Mohammed” we are good.
Also if you know if anyone else creating their own cartoon, send me a link to their site. If anyone else does this, I want to know. Let’s all create a nice little network of sites. Let’s in a virtual way, lock arms together and sing, “we shall overcome.” As Benjamin Franklin once said, “We must all hang together, or assuredly, we shall all hang separately.”
But Ann Althouse and James Taranto [links lost] (who gives a nice backgrounder) reply (in paraphrase) “but you will offend moderate Muslims.” Indeed we will and I want to be very clear. If I could think of any other way to do this, I would do it. I berated Althouse on her blog over and over, “what is the alternative.” No one has offered anything.
But they are correct that there is a cost to this approach. We will be posting messages that are dang near guaranteed to offend good Muslims who both respect their prophet and the freedom of speech. To them I say your sensibilities are collateral damage in the fight for freedom. To them I say it is a necessary evil.
Actually as I was copying it, I realized that everything was in his version except the last paragraph. You know, the part where I make it clear that I know that most Muslims are good and respect both their faith and our freedom. That pesky part. But I was able find a fragment of it and reconstructed it. It might vary insignificantly from the original, but it as close as I can get it to the original.
So that is my piece, and so now we turn to Schmalfeldt’s “fisking.” Well, it is a sight to behold. You see apparently I burned down the Reichstag or something.
So let’s fisk the fisking, shall we? (His text in red.)
Aaron Walker had a reason for starting “Everyone Draw Mohammed Day” and it had nothing to do with Freedom of Speech.
Well, in fact, I didn’t start Everyone Draw Mohammed Day. A Seattle cartoonist did. I wasn’t even the biggest participant. The big Facebook page had around 100,000 participants before some islamofacist hacked it and shut it down. By comparison, my site had around 800 submissions.
It had everything to do with inflaming anti-American hatred in the Arab and Islamic world so people like Walker could point to the peace-loving Muslims living among us and accuse them of guilt by association.
Which I did brilliantly by including actual cartoons... drawn by Muslims. And by constantly stating that most Muslims didn’t support the acts of Revolution Islam. I am tricksy that way.
And of course no attack on me would be complete without an imputation of racism on my part:
Those dirty Muslims had better learn how to act right, like decent white Americans, right?
Of course that ignores the fact that the site was co-administrated by an Iranian American. But more fundamentally, there is nothing more bigoted than saying that people of a particular ethnicity or religion are uniquely incapable of withstanding insult. I believe that whatever your faith, whatever your ethnicity, whatever your color, you are equally capable of living in freedom. Bill Schmalfeldt, meanwhile, believes that those “dirty Muslims” are not able to live in the freedom that “decent white Americans” enjoy. Who exactly is the bigot?
Next up he objects because the issue is about a Cartoon.
Wait an ever-fucking minute! We’re going to set the Muslim word aflame because of something we saw on a CARTOON?
Well, yes, freedom of expression applies even to cartoons.
Moving on he then argues that I don’t care about free speech unless I agree with it.
Aside from the fact that these Right Wing nutjobs only give a shit about “Free Speech” when it’s THEIR SPEECH being protected
Which of course is obviously false. For instance, on the Everyone Draw Mohammed site I allowed for cartoons that featured Jesus, my Lord and savior, and insulted him as well in absolutely disgusting ways. I mean, some of the cartoons featured Jesus being sodomized, for instance. I didn’t agree with that message, but I did believe they had a right to say it and I did after all offer a free forum. So not only did I support freedom of speech when I didn’t agree with the message, I actively facilitated messages I didn’t agree with.
Then he goes on to quote the First Amendment and say that South Park being intimidated into silence is not a violation of it, because the First Amendment only talks about Congressional action. Yes, really. Go read it above and see for yourself.
Which is actually true and that is why I didn’t say this was a violation of the First Amendment, but of free speech or freedom of expression. Because freedom of expression is a bigger concept than just what the First Amendment protects. If the government doesn’t actively violate your rights, but meanwhile thugs a free to threaten you into silence, then are you truly free to speak? Of course not.
But Schmalfeldt doesn’t care about that.
Then he gets to the part where I talk about the threat by Revolution Islam. Just for your convenience, here is what I said again (my text in green):
In this the government has failed us. How is it that Revolution Islam is allowed to threaten these people’s lives, and to extort them into silence, and walk around as free men? Many reports say that they didn’t “technically” threaten them, but the law of extortion doesn’t rest on whether you technically say, “do this/don’t do that or we will kill you.” You only have to communicate a threat in language that an ordinary peson would understand to be a threat. Everyone knows they are threatening them. So why isn’t the police in New York beating down their doors?
He then writes this:
Hard to believe this was written by someone who claims to have a law degree, isn’t it? The legal definition of “threat” includes the “expressed intent to carry out the harm”. Unless someone saying “you should have your ass kicked for saying that” is not a threat. “I am coming to your neighborhood to skulk around in your back yard, take pictures of your kids, and then kick your ass,” IS a threat. How odd that a practitioner of the art of jurisprudence would be so woefully unaware of such a simple concept!
Now I find two things fascinating, here. First, he is wrong. I mean, literally in this case, wrong. The man who made that threat pled guilty to the crime of interstate threats in October 20, 2010. From the FBI press release announcing the guilty plea:
Zachary Adam Chesser, 20, of Fairfax County, Va., pleaded guilty today before U.S. District Court Judge Liam O’Grady to a three-count criminal information that included charges of communicating threats against the writers of the South Park television show, soliciting violent jihadists to desensitize law enforcement, and attempting to provide material support to Al-Shabaab, a designated foreign terrorist organization.
Which means I owed the FBI an apology for thinking they were just letting them get away with it. And of course Schmalfeldt owes me an apology for telling me I didn’t know the law in this area. Evidently I did.
But the more interesting thing is the insight it gives into his mind. Apparently he thought if one was not sufficiently explicit that this didn’t count as a threat. No wonder he thought he could threaten myself, Patrick Frey, John Hoge and Lee Stranahan by saying “Beware the Ides of March.” He was led to believe that if he didn’t technically say, “I am going to kill you” that this didn’t count as a threat.
He goes on to claim that the threat was not real enough. But of course it was real enough to silence Comedy Central, so how real did he need it to be?
And the silly boy thought I actually charged to let people publish on the site. I never did.
And finally he gets to one point that is semi-valid. It is true as you might have seen in the mission statement itself that I didn’t give out my real name and indeed pretended to do so. When I revealed I was not really named “Aaron Worthing” I said that if you wanted to denounce me or hate me for doing so, that was your prerogative. Thankfully most people have not.
I also explained the reason why I did this. I said that while I was willing, at that point in time, to reveal my real name, my wife objected. So I was left with a conundrum. I had watched several people be intimidated out of doing it, and I felt strongly that someonehad to do something about it, but I couldn’t do the ideal thing, which as give out my real name because it wasn’t just my decision: it was my wife’s too. So I told the white lie. I pretended to reveal my real name when in fact I did nothing of the sort.
And the irony is that the lie has become true in a sense. You know my real name, everyone knows I had run an Everyone Draw Mohammed site, and indeed, I face a much more immediate threat from another terrorist every day. If you ever thought I was a coward for not giving out my real name in the first place, I would ask if my conduct since then has changed your assessment.
But of course if you want to think I am an awful person for having told that lie, that is your prerogative.
Then, finally, he gets to the part where I said I saw no alternative. And he writes in all caps for emphasis:
What’s the alternative?
WHAT’S THE ALTERNATIVE?
HOW ABOUT YOU SHUT YOUR FUCKING WORD HOLE AND JUST LIVE AND LET LIVE?
That’s a fucking alternative!
You got that? He favors... giving in to terrorism! Letting people be threatened into silence.
Look, I didn’t have a problem with a person saying at the time, “I didn’t want to draw Mohammed, because it would offend good and moderate Muslims.” I disagreed with that stance, but I understood. And likewise, if Comedy Central had censored those images because they don’t want to offend good Muslims, I would have been 100% cool with it. Maybe I would have been a little piqued that they don’t show that much sensitivity toward Christians, but it wouldn’t have been a big deal for me.
But to do it out of terror? That is a dangerous idea. Because today it is telling us we can’t even depict Mohammed, however benignly. And then tomorrow it is, you can’t vote for a certain party. Voltaire once said “to learn who rules over you, find out who you are not allowed to criticize.” Well, I refuse to be ruled over by terrorists... be them Muslim terrorists, or Brett Kimberlin and his toadies.
And then finally Schmalfeldt apparently gets off his meds, explaining what is supposedly the real purpose of the Everyone Draw Mohammed:
The purpose, as your friend and defender Pam Geller stated in her blog of misery, “Atlas Shrugs” is to “GET RID OF ISLAM!” Your GOAL is the eradication of a major world religion. Conservative Christians, Extremist Anti-Muslim Jews working hand in hand, although at cross purposes. The Extremist Jews want to rid themselves of an enemy instead of negotiating a peace agreement with them. Conservative Christians want the Muslims “all gone” so they can convince you nice Jewish folk to get your asses back to Israel so JESUS can come back. Of course, they don’t tell you that when Jesus gets here, that means the Jews — along with whatever Muslims are left, along with the Hindus and Buddhists and Shintoists and Atheists and everyone who doesn’t believe in their “straight and narrow road” gets sent to Hell. Doesn’t matter that Jews don’t believe in Hell. When Jesus comes back, by golly, 144,000 of you are gonna turn Christian (according to interpretations of biblical prophecy) and the rest of you go right smack dab to hell. Romney’s going to, since he’s a Mormon. See, the conservatives will vote for him knowing that his soul is damned anyway but he is a useful idiot who will serve their purposes of enriching their bottom line while causing endless wars in Iraq and Iran and Syria and Yemen and Egypt and Libya and wherever else he can send your 47% “poor schmuck” sons and daughters to die for the military industrial machine. They’ll put up with a Mormon president, as long as he jumps when the Koch Brothers yell “Jump!”
I wish I could refer to this as mindless hatred, Walker. But you and your ilk have put a lot of thought into it. And for that, if there is a Hell, there’s an extra hot corner, right there, next to Andrew Breitbart, waiting for you.
May that day come soon.
Maranatha!
And all of this would be accomplished by drawing cartoons. Like this:
(That’s still my favorite.)
The mind boggles.
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Sidebar: Come to think of it, wishing death on someone else? Saying you will burn in hell and “may that day come soon.” Mmm, I think this goes toward his pattern of conduct.
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Disclaimer:
I have accused some people, particularly Brett Kimberlin, of reprehensible conduct. In some cases, the conduct is even criminal. In all cases, the only justice I want is through the appropriate legal process—such as the criminal justice system. I do not want to see vigilante violence against any person or any threat of such violence. This kind of conduct is not only morally wrong, but it is counter-productive.
In the particular case of Brett Kimberlin, I do not want you to even contact him. Do not call him. Do not write him a letter. Do not write him an email. Do not text-message him. Do not engage in any kind of directed communication. I say this in part because under Maryland law, that can quickly become harassment and I don’t want that to happen to him.
And for that matter, don’t go on his property. Don’t sneak around and try to photograph him. Frankly try not to even be within his field of vision. Your behavior could quickly cross the line into harassment in that way too (not to mention trespass and other concerns).
And do not contact his organizations, either. And most of all, leave his family alone.
The only exception to all that is that if you are reporting on this, there is of course nothing wrong with contacting him for things like his official response to any stories you might report. And even then if he tells you to stop contacting him, obey that request. That this is a key element in making out a harassment claim under Maryland law—that a person asks you to stop and you refuse.
And let me say something else. In my heart of hearts, I don’t believe that any person supporting me has done any of the above. But if any of you have, stop it, and if you haven’t don’t start.
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