Cornflower - this thread's ostensibly about whether Yusuf Islam should be allowed to tour Australia, given some idiotic statements he made 20 years ago. One particularly Islamophobic poster extended that to wanting Waleed Aly banned from the ABC, with out giving an explanation. It's not trolling to ask him to explain himself.

I haven't said anything at all about "the Australian people" (whoever they are) on this thread. You're just up to your usual tricks, wanting to to divert the thread into your ongoing personal harrassment of me. That is trolling, and I'm not going to play. Ciao.

I tried but failed to find youtube footage of Cat Stevens wishing to see Salman Rushdie burned. However Mr. Stevens had successfully had most of the footage removed. (Why if he had nothing to hide?)

Where I failed Andrew Bolt has succeeded.

http://blogs.news.com.au/heraldsun/andrewbolt/

You need to scroll down to find the video

Q: Would you go to a demonstration if you knew an effigy was to be burnt

A: I would have hoped it would be the real thing but actually no if it was just an effigy I don't think I'd be that moved to go there.

It doesn't look to me as if he's joking. Nor do I see how he can claim that he was quoted out of context.

But perhaps someone here can explain it to me.

Foxy?

Pericles?

CJ Morgan?

Anybody?

I guess some of this groupies will use the fact that I got this video from Bolt's blog to dismiss it.

Any excuse to avoid facing the facts.

CJ Morgan, Pericles aren't "inconvenient-fact-o-phobes" a problem

I have now watched that video a dozen times. It is beyond grotesque.

It is TERRIFYING.

Cat Steven is living proof of Steven Weinberg's wise words:

"With or without religion, good people can behave well and bad people can do evil; but for good people to do evil — that takes religion."

My anger has subsided and I now find myself thinking of Cat Stevens as a victim. I do not know what personal circumstances brought him to this loathsome belief system. Perhaps some Imam trapped him at a vulnerable moment. Really I cannot begin to imagine how it happened.

But all I can say is this:

Mr. Stevens, save yourself. Reclaim your brain.

You poor, poor, sod.

Here is a better link

http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=54174770

I feel ill. I think the sight of Cat Stevens sitting there calmly expressing a wish to see an author burned for writing a book is going to give me nightmares.

This is one sick puppy talking.

I honestly don't know what is worse. Watching Stevens express such DREADFUL thoughts or the fact that ANYONE could seek to excuse or minimise the horror of it.

For once Godwin's rule be damned. In this case the Nazi comparison is all too valid.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4_j4c7Bop0

"Where they burn books, they will also, in the end, burn humans" Heinrich Heine.

It seems that at least some strands of Islam ignore the book burning stage and go straight for the humans

Dear Steven,

I'm about to go to bed after watching
the news and I just popped in and I
can see how upset you are about this
Cat Stevens business - which happened
over twenty years ago. He may indeed
have been "one sick puppy talking"
at that time, as you put it.

However, what I found distressing was
what was on the news this evening.
How do you feel about what's happening
in Gaza?

In the spider web of facts, many a truth
is strangled.

C J Morgan,

It was a simple question which you yourself demanded another poster to answer regarding his views of a cultural group you continually show favour to.

However when the same question is put to you concerning your views of Australians, your fellow countrymen, you refuse to answer, claiming it is 'trolling'. It is highly relevant to this thread where you have levelled accusations of hate against others. Odd how it wasn't 'trolling' when you asked the question before.