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Republican PR Firm Marketing ‘Third Jihad’
Clarion Fund, the non-profit anti-Muslim group which created Obsession and Third Jihad, claims that its “educational” efforts to make the world aware of the menace of radical Islam are non-partisan. It has to do so to maintain its 501c3. But everything this outfit does is partisan. Reader Robin McLaren notes that a Phoenix newspaper said this about a local screening of the film:
Brent Lowder, a partner in Frontline Strategies LLC, represented the nonprofit Clarion Fund, which produced the film…
The Clarion Fund describes itself as a nonpartisan organization aimed at educating Americans about national security issues, particularly about the threat of radical Islam.
So who, you ask, is Front Line Strategies (the reporter likely spelled the company name wrong), which “represented” Clarion? Take a gander at their website:
Front Line Strategies was founded by Brett Doster following his widely successful performance as Executive Director of the Bush-Cheney Re-election campaign in Florida in 2004.
Ah yes, the PR firm of the guy that brought you the Florida hanging chad debacle is now marketing Third Jihad. Nothing partisan about that.
And there’s more: Lowder himself ran Rudy Guiliani’s California presidential primary campaign. He also ran Bill Simon’s unsuccessful CA. Republican primary campaign for governor. He also once worked for former Republican governor, Pete Wilson.
Guest of honor at the Third Jihad shindig was none other than token Muslim-Republican-free marketeer-libertarian Zuhdi Jasser, who is incidentally the star attraction of the film (aside from Rudy Giuliani, who is also featured prominently). Apparently, some of his local co-religionists don’t take kindly to Jasser’s views:
Jasser is not without his detractors. In 2005, the Arizona Muslim Voice newspaper published an editorial cartoon depicting Jasser as a dog dismembering and devouring another Muslim. His views have been criticized by members of his own mosque.
I keep adding incremental pieces of evidence that point to a very strong relationship between not just Clarion and Republicans, but likely the Republican Jewish Coalition (of whom Rudy is a beloved candidate btw).
JPass said:
I found your site after my friend brought this racist pos movie named obsession. I looked up the Clarion Fund and eventually found this.
This might interest you…
Found using google.com are two pdf files on the obsession website which outline an apparent exchange between a Rep. Hasner of Flordia and Dr. Machento, president of the University of Flordia. Seems Hasner was pissed off when Flordia refused to show this POS movie.
http://www.obsessionthemovie.com/UOF/LetterfromMachentoHasner.pdf
http://www.obsessionthemovie.com/UOF/LetterfromRepHasnertoDrMachen.pdf
Joachim Martillo said:
Maybe it reflects the nature of the Hafiz el-Assad regime, but Syrian origin psychiatrist Wafa Sultan and German Professor Bassam Tibi share a lot of the basic Neocon view of the world with Zuhdi Jasser.
When I met Tibi at Harvard, I was not particularly impressed with his understanding of Central and Eastern European history and politics.
I give him credit for reading Hannah Arendt (”The Totalitarianism of Jihadist Islamism and its Challenge to Europe and to Islam.” in: Totalitarian Movements and Political Religions, Vol. 8, No. 1, March 2007, 35–54.), but I do not believe he understood her or her context, and I have some real problems when he applies her half-understood concepts to issues of Islamic politicization as found in the Islamic world and in Europe.
BenSix said:
The backers of Obsession also employed a promoter who works for the anti-Obama campaign organisation Our Country Deserves Better. It seems likely that he was hired through his PR group Russo Marsh & Rogers, which has many Republican affiliations (see its Sourcewatch article.
Ben
The Clarion Fund And Their Political Preferences… « Back Towards The Locus said:
[...] tip of the hat to Richard Silverstein… Posted in US Politics [...]
Alex said:
i FIND IT SO FUNNY THAT YOU THINK THAT REPUBLICANS FORCED THESE PEOPLE TO SAY THOSE THINGS AND TO BLOW PEOPLE UP. TO TELL YOU THE TRUTH YOU ARE PROBALLY PLANTED BY THE CRAZY JIHADIST. NOT MUSLIM BUT JIHADIST, THERE IS A DIFFERENCE AND THESE FILMS ARE ABOUT JIHADIST WHO THEMSELVES ARE JIHADIST AND BRAG ABOUT IT AND SAY THAT THEY WANT TO RULE THE WORLD. YOU GUYS ARE PATHETIC…
Richard Silverstein said:
@Alex: IS YOUR KEYBOARD LOCKED ON UPPER CASE OR DO YOU JUST WANT TO SHOUT????!!!
And yes, I AM a jihadist plant. Born, raised & educated in Riyadh. Ya found me out! I shoulda known I’d be unmasked by someone with your superior powers of observation.