tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848640164815342479.post1096830060646581072..comments2024-03-18T16:01:13.871-07:00Comments on Haq's Musings: Can Muslim Vote Swing US Race?Riaz Haqhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00522781692886598586noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848640164815342479.post-54526235466716929562014-11-16T09:29:47.028-08:002014-11-16T09:29:47.028-08:00Here are a few links that help understand US voter...Here are a few links that help understand US voters demographics, turn-out stats and impact on election results in 2012 vs 2014:<br /><br />http://www.nbcnews.com/meet-the-press/nerdscreen-its-all-about-turnout-n249571<br /><br />http://thedataweb.rm.census.gov/TheDataWeb_HotReport2/voting/voting.hrml<br /><br />http://www.census.gov/prod/2013pubs/p20-568.pdf<br />Riaz Haqhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00522781692886598586noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848640164815342479.post-82484564329419205092012-11-08T16:29:01.778-08:002012-11-08T16:29:01.778-08:00Ibn Percy argues in his post that Muslim vote help...Ibn <a href="http://www.ibnpercy.com/the-muslim-vote-helped-obama-defeat-romney-in-the-2012-presidential-election/" rel="nofollow">Percy argues in his post</a> that Muslim vote helped Obama win the most important swing states of Ohio, Virginia and Florida without which he would not be re-elected. Here's the gist of his argument: <br /><br /><i>Obama won Virginia by a little over 100k. The estimated Muslim population is greater than 250,000...Numbers in Florida and Ohio are similar.<br /><br />Virginia:<br /><br />Results (as of Wed. Nov. 7, 8:33 AM / 97% reporting):<br /><br />President Barack Obama 1,852,123<br />Mitt Romney 1,745,397<br />Difference 106,726<br />Estimated Muslim Population 250,000+<br /><br />Florida:<br /><br />Results (as of Wed. Nov. 7, 9:01 AM / 97% reporting):<br />President Barack Obama 4,129,360<br />Mitt Romney 4,083,321<br />Difference 46,039<br />Estimated Muslim Population 400,000+<br /><br />Ohio:<br /><br />Results (as of Wed. Nov. 7, 9:23 AM / 90% reporting):<br />President Barack Obama 2,672,302<br />Mitt Romney 2,571,539<br />Difference 100,763<br />Estimated Muslim Population 150,000+</i><br /><br />http://www.ibnpercy.com/the-muslim-vote-helped-obama-defeat-romney-in-the-2012-presidential-election/Riaz Haqhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00522781692886598586noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848640164815342479.post-48316326328838886532008-09-17T09:10:00.000-07:002008-09-17T09:10:00.000-07:00Anonymous,Both parties spend tens of millions of d...Anonymous,<BR/>Both parties spend tens of millions of dollars on high-priced consultants and spin doctors to convince voters to their point of view. So far, Obama is way ahead in spending to cover up his very thin resume. In the words of Ralph Nader, Obama is an "overcautious captive of his handlers" who has redefined himself for the national campaign. Please read <A HREF="http://www.riazhaq.com/2008/02/comparing-ralph-nader-and-imran-khan.html" REL="nofollow">here</A>Riaz Haqhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00522781692886598586noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848640164815342479.post-58268500245198589032008-09-16T12:36:00.000-07:002008-09-16T12:36:00.000-07:00Riaz,I think I might have mis-communicated my thou...Riaz,<BR/><BR/>I think I might have mis-communicated my thoughts. My comments were directed towards using propaganda to win votes. I am not anti-Jew, we are all god's people at the end of the day, just choose to call him different names. In my opinion extremism or Zionism in any way shape or form is not representative of a religion.<BR/><BR/>I just feel that propaganda in these elections have swayed our opinions. Words like maverick, bridge to nowhere, more experience etc echo from every major news source. Here is how Obama supporters feel about double standards in the media. Double standards, which I feel your blog entry is based on. Some are highlighted below:<BR/><BR/>If you're a Democrat and you make a VP pick without fully vetting the individual you're 'reckless.' A Republican who doesn't fully vet is a 'maverick.'<BR/><BR/>If you spend 3 years as a community organizer growing your organization from a staff of 1 to 13 and your budget from $70,000 to $400,000, then become the first black President of the Harvard Law Review,create a voter registration drive that registers 150,000 new African Amerian voters, spend 12 years as a Constitutional Law professor,then spend nearly 8 more years as a State Senator representing a district with over 750,000 people, becoming chairman of the state Senate's Health and Human Services committee, then spend nearly 4 years in the United States Senate representing a state of nearly 13 million people, sponsoring 131 bills and serving on the Foreign Affairs, Environment and Public Works and Veteran's Affairs committees, you are woefully inexperienced.<BR/><BR/>If you spend 4 years on the city council and 6 years as the mayor of a town with less than 7,000 people, then spend 20 months as the governor of a state with 650,000 people, you've got the most executive experience of anyone on either ticket, are the Commander in Chief of the Alaska military and are well qualified to lead the nation should you be called upon to do so because your state is the closest state to Russia.<BR/><BR/>If you are a Democratic male candidate who is popular with millions of people you are an 'arrogant celebrity'. If you are a popular republican female candidate you are 'energizing the base'.<BR/><BR/>If you are a younger male candidate who thinks for himself and makes his own decisions you are 'presumptuous'. if you are an older male candidate who makes last minute decisions you refuse to explain, you are a 'shoot from the hip' maverick.<BR/><BR/>If you are a candidate with a Harvard law degree you are 'an elitist 'out of touch' with the real America . if you are a legacy (dad and granddad were admirals) graduate of Annapolis , with multiple disciplinary infractions you are a hero.<BR/><BR/>If you manage a multi-million dollar nationwide campaign, you are an 'empty suit'.If you are a part time mayor of a town of 7000 people, you are an 'experienced executive'.<BR/><BR/>If you go to a south side Chicago church, your beliefs are 'extremist'. If you believe in creationism and don't believe global warming is man made, you are 'strongly principled'.<BR/><BR/>Some below are unrelated to our discussion but are some of the propaganda tricks used by McCain Campaign:<BR/><BR/>If you're a conservative and you're selected for a job over more qualified candidates you're a 'game changer.'<BR/><BR/>Black teen pregnancies? A 'crisis' in black America. White teen pregnancies? A 'blessed event.'<BR/><BR/>If you teach abstinence only in sex education, you get teen parents. If you teach responsible age appropriate sex education, including the proper use of birth control, you are eroding the fiber of society.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848640164815342479.post-80424769401658719022008-09-16T11:40:00.000-07:002008-09-16T11:40:00.000-07:00Anonymous,As far as Israel lobby is concerned, bot...Anonymous,<BR/>As far as Israel lobby is concerned, both parties kowtow to them, Democrats more so than Republicans. Here are the facts:<BR/><BR/>1. Obama's VP proudly claims to be "Zionist" , even though he's not even a Jew. Obama's VP pick gave his views on<BR/>http://www.yoeutube.com/watch?v=yAZmO80dLfE Shalom TV about<BR/>Israel and the US as allies, why he is a Zionist, leniency<BR/>for Jonathan Pollard (Israeli spy), and why Israel had nothing to do with the US war on Iraq.<BR/><BR/>2. Among 100 US senators, there is only one black (Obama) and 10 Jews, all of them Democrats and pro-Israel.<BR/><BR/>3. There are 2 Jews among 9 Supreme Court judges. Both Jews were appointed by Clinton.Riaz Haqhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00522781692886598586noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848640164815342479.post-24570723100337165412008-09-16T10:29:00.000-07:002008-09-16T10:29:00.000-07:00To: Anyone of you thinking that voting for McCain ...To: Anyone of you thinking that voting for McCain is a solution to Muslim issues.<BR/><BR/>Please read this article about the new movie ‘Obsession: Radical Islam’s War Against the West’ distributed by Clarion Fund. This DVD is being distributed as newspaper insert to 28 million people this week. The distribution seems to be predominant in swing states.<BR/><BR/>“Funding is coming from a New York-based group called the Clarion Fund, a shadowy outfit whose financial backers are unclear. … Although supposedly a 501 c(3) non-profit, this week the Clarion Fund’s website featured an article supporting John McCain.” by Erik Ose. Find the article here:<BR/><BR/>http://www.huffingtonpost.com/erik-ose/pro-mccain-group-dumping_b_125969.html<BR/><BR/>In addition read this as well. "Anti-Muslim Film Produced by Pro-Israel Partisan Boosts McCain":<BR/><BR/>http://www.israelenews.com/view.asp?ID=3104<BR/><BR/>So please be weary of propaganda vs. real policy change amongst the candidates.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848640164815342479.post-57705129075218140592008-09-12T16:58:00.000-07:002008-09-12T16:58:00.000-07:00I support going after Osama and his ilk, wherever ...I support going after Osama and his ilk, wherever they are. So Palin is right about that. But Palin is not the top of the ticket. McCain is.<BR/>What Palin said, in answer to questions, has been US policy for a long time.<BR/>The difference I see is that McCain has never taken the position that Obama has. Obama is issuing loud, long distance threats against Pakistan without a lot of thought. He has made no attempt to visit/talk with Pakistani leaders. He's made gratuitous accusations against Pakistan, such as the recent one about Pak preparing for war with India.<BR/>McCain, on the other hand, believes in engaging diplomatically with Pakistan, as evidenced by his repeated visits to Islamabad and personal telephone calls as recently as this week.<BR/>I am afraid the stampede is on among Muslim and Pakistani Americans to vote for Obama. I believe it's a mistake we'll all live to regret.Riaz Haqhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00522781692886598586noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848640164815342479.post-39032812732172962792008-09-12T15:19:00.000-07:002008-09-12T15:19:00.000-07:00I firmly believe, based on the behavior/statements...<I>I firmly believe, based on the behavior/statements of McCain and Obama re Pakistan, that there is a better chance of avoiding a direct military confront between US and Pakistan under a McCain administration than under Obama.</I><BR/><BR/>Riaz are you still rooting for McCain after Charles Gibson's interview with Sarah Palin yesterday? She's an even crazier loon than Bush is. She's scarily religious - in Iraq the US is fighting "God's War"; is willing to declare war on Russia; and has no idea what the doctrine of pre-emption means. Ms New-Age Annie Oakley could be a heartbeat away from being Commander in Chief. Is that what you'd prefer? Obama is no friend of Pakistan, but he's certainly got a better idea of what happens outside Juneau, Alaska. Beware the hockey Mom who likes to shoot: she usually has a chip on her shoulder.libertarianhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05258039856928341788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848640164815342479.post-12095851165407573582008-09-11T09:58:00.000-07:002008-09-11T09:58:00.000-07:00Received another diatribe via email on this post f...Received another diatribe via email on this post from a Pakistani-American physician in Washington DC area. Here it is:<BR/><BR/><I>McCain is a Neo-con. He wanted Lieberman as his VP. Lindsay Graham is a Neo-con.<BR/><BR/>McCain is a soldier from three generations, and is still angry at his government for the loss in Vietnam. He calls it a political loss.<BR/><BR/>So he has a personal agenda, which can be easily exploited given the present circumstances.<BR/><BR/>Remember when he went to Baghdad and roamed the streets saying that all is normal.<BR/><BR/>Millions of dollars were spent on his security that day.<BR/><BR/>Michael Ware the CNN correspondent in Baghdad, blasted McCain for his folly, Saying” which world does McCain live in”.<BR/><BR/>Within a month Michael Ware was covering Rugby in Australia for CNN.<BR/><BR/>And you say he is not a neo-con.<BR/><BR/> <BR/><BR/>They have already started to take over FATA, and with Zardari having his first press conference with Karzai, the footprints of Khalilzad are all over the place.<BR/><BR/>What will Kayani do, throw over Zardari?<BR/><BR/>Republicans were on Pakistan side because Pakistan was doing the dirty business for CIA , from Bada Boar U2 flights to the Ping Pong diplomacy.<BR/><BR/>But never came to rescue East Pakistan.<BR/><BR/> <BR/><BR/>Should we believe the press, when Scooter Libby tells Judith Miller to write an article in New York Times, and Cheney comes on Meet The Press to say that the New York Times is reporting this?<BR/><BR/>It is not that simple, the game is more the what is on the surface.<BR/><BR/>Chris Matthews and Keith Olbermann can be replaced as anchors at MSNBC, for covering the elections. Hannity , O’Reilly and Blitzer stay intact.<BR/><BR/>Love politics, it is more than fiction! </I><BR/><BR/>Here is my response:<BR/><BR/><I>All of the neocon discussion and conspiracy theories aside, please understand that Pakistan faces grave danger from within and outside, regardless of who gets elected in the US. As we exchange emails, the two militaries are facing off in FATA, with each issuing daily warnings to the other. Please read: <A HREF="http://www.riazhaq.com/2008/09/is-pakistan-us-military-confrontation.html" REL="nofollow"> Is US-Pakistan Military Confrontation Inevitable</A><BR/><BR/>I firmly believe, based on the behavior/statements of McCain and Obama re Pakistan, that there is a better chance of avoiding a direct military confront between US and Pakistan under a McCain administration than under Obama.<BR/>Just look at what happened this week.<BR/><BR/>1. In an interview with O'Reilly, Obama accused Pakistan of preparing for war with India, without offering any proof. This was totally uncalled for, unnecessary. He was just mouthing off Indian propaganda without thinking. Probably heard it from an Indian lobbyist.<BR/>2. When Zardari was sworn in, McCain called to congratulate him and talked with him. Obama simply releases a statement of greetings.<BR/><BR/>I share the concerns of many Americans about Obama's lack of readiness to be president. I see him as just another novice, just like George W. Bush was a novice in 2000 when the American Muslim herd helped get him elected. </I>Riaz Haqhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00522781692886598586noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848640164815342479.post-11440158815081423512008-09-10T21:56:00.000-07:002008-09-10T21:56:00.000-07:00I have had a number of emails suggesting that it w...I have had a number of emails suggesting that it would be a mistake for Pakistani and Muslim Americans to vote for McCain. The emailers essentially argue that a McCain administration will be a continuation of George Bush's 8 years. They say the necons will dominate it and start new pre-emptive wars. Here are some of my arguments in response:<BR/><BR/>First, let me say that McCain is neither necon nor a standard-issue Republican.<BR/>He's always shown his independence from his party orthodoxy.<BR/><BR/>Second, if elected, McCain will have to contend with the overwhelming majority of Democrats in both the House and the Senate.<BR/>He will not enjoy the kind of carte blanch that Bush had in his first term when he started both Afghan and Iraq wars and engaged in massive violations of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. McCain supported the wars, like most other Dems including Hillary and Biden. But he broke from his party and opposed many of the excesses such as CIA renditions, torture and unauthorized surveillance.<BR/><BR/>So I do not buy into the argument that McCain will go along with all of the ill-conceived adventures and ideas cooked up by AEI or Lieberman etc.<BR/><BR/>But, let's say for the sake of argument, that he is a true necon Republican and he does go along with the Israeli lobby.<BR/>The Israeli lobby is far more interested in punishing Iran than bombing Pakistan.<BR/>Given that McCain will not have unlimited resources (and does recognize limits to US power) and a Democratic Congress to contend with, he is far more likely to choose to go after Iran than Pakistan. If McCain does go after Iran, US will be pre-occupied with it for a long time before thinking of another war. Obama, on the other the hand, has made it clear that he sees Pakistan as the "central front in war on terror". He'd rather talk with Iran and go to war with Pakistan. I believe Pakistan will not be a push-over. Just look at Gen Kayani's warning to the US military today. Pakistan will prove to be a far tougher target for Obama, with the potential for a disaster for both the US forces and Pakistan. Ultimately, if US goes to war with Pakistan, Al-Qaeda and Taliban will be the winners.<BR/><BR/>If history is any guide, Republican presidents have always been relatively friendly with Pakistan and Democrat president have alway short-changed Pakistan and preferred to cozy up with India in the name of democracy. Pakistan has been heavily sanctioned under successive Democratic administrations for one reason or another. Even if they think they are targeting Pak military or dictators, the Democrats end up badly hurting the average Pakistanis.<BR/><BR/>From the domestic US policy point of view, Democrats may be a better choice, but having a Democrat dominated House and Senate will take care of that.Riaz Haqhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00522781692886598586noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848640164815342479.post-6671782066457318592008-09-09T17:02:00.000-07:002008-09-09T17:02:00.000-07:00John McCain telephoned President Zardari to person...John McCain telephoned President Zardari to personally congratulate him. Barack Obama issued a statement congratulating Mr. Zardari.<BR/><BR/>McCain has been to Pakistan as senator many times and as presidential candidate last year. Obama did not include Pakistan on his recent world tour that took him to Afghanistan.<BR/><BR/>Does this difference tell you anything?Riaz Haqhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00522781692886598586noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848640164815342479.post-65434362267035194192008-09-08T07:19:00.000-07:002008-09-08T07:19:00.000-07:00It's a big leap and a huge risk to assume that Oba...It's a big leap and a huge risk to assume that Obama doesn't mean what he says re Pakistan and Muslims. Muslims took a chance on Bush and saw the consequences. Do we want to repeat that mistake by voting for another novice who has talked about "bombing" Pakistan and vigorously rejected the "Muslim" label as if it was an epithet? I think not.Riaz Haqhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00522781692886598586noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5848640164815342479.post-79663307905996840352008-09-08T05:44:00.000-07:002008-09-08T05:44:00.000-07:00Obama may just be "acting" anti muslim-ish in orde...Obama may just be "acting" anti muslim-ish in order to counter his muslim back ground maybe he doesnt actually intend to do anything major concerning Pakistan or Muslims's in general...<BR/><BR/>pakireport.blogspot.comAnonymousnoreply@blogger.com