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THINK-ISRAEL |
President Obama showed off Jefferson's Koran at a recent White House Iftar Dinner, but ignored the book in its historical context.
According to a press release[1] from the White House dated August 10, 2012, the President told those gathered at the Iftar[2] dinner, where Muslims break the fast of Ramadan, that,
"As I've noted before, Thomas Jefferson once held a sunset dinner here with an envoy from Tunisia -- perhaps the first Iftar at the White House, more than 200 years ago. And some of you, as you arrived tonight, may have seen our special display, courtesy of our friends at the Library of Congress -- the Koran that belonged to Thomas Jefferson. And that's a reminder, along with the generations of patriotic Muslims in America, that Islam -- like so many faiths -- is part of our national story."
The President ignored the context for that "first Iftar at the White House." To mention it would have been politically incorrect. Here, thought, is the rest of the "first Iftar" dinner at the White House.
The context for the Tunisian envoy's visit to Washington goes back to the trouble the Barbary Pirates were making for merchant ships off the coast of North Africa. On that matter, for Slate[3] the late Christopher Hitchens wrote:
"[I]n 1786, the new United States found that it was having to deal very directly with the tenets of the Muslim religion. The Barbary states of North Africa (or, if you prefer, the North African provinces of the Ottoman Empire, plus Morocco) were using the ports of today's Algeria, Libya, and Tunisia to wage a war of piracy and enslavement against all shipping that passed through the Strait of Gibraltar. Thousands of vessels were taken, and more than a million Europeans and Americans sold into slavery. The fledgling United States of America was in an especially difficult position, having forfeited the protection of the British Royal Navy. Under this pressure, Congress gave assent to the Treaty of Tripoli, negotiated by Jefferson's friend Joel Barlow, which stated roundly that "the government of the United States of America is not, in any sense, founded on the Christian religion, as it has in itself no character of enmity against the laws, religion or tranquility of Musselmen." This has often been taken as a secular affirmation, which it probably was, but the difficulty for secularists is that it also attempted to buy off the Muslim pirates by the payment of tribute. That this might not be so easy was discovered by Jefferson and John Adams when they went to call on Tripoli's envoy to London, Ambassador Sidi Haji Abdrahaman. They asked him by what right he extorted money and took slaves in this way. As Jefferson later reported to Secretary of State John Jay, and to the Congress:
'The ambassador answered us that [the right] was founded on the Laws of the Prophet, that it was written in their Koran, that all nations who should not have answered their authority were sinners, that it was their right and duty to make war upon them wherever they could be found, and to make slaves of all they could take as prisoners, and that every Mussulman who should be slain in battle was sure to go to Paradise.'"
The "envoy" to whom Obama referred was Sidi Soliman Mellimelli. He arrived in Washington, D.C. on November 30, 1805. This is how Monticello.org[4] (the private, non-profit organization that maintains Jefferson's famous home) describes his visit:
"Over the next six months, this exotic representative from a distant and unfamiliar culture would add spice to the Washington social season but also test the diplomatic abilities of President Thomas Jefferson and his administration.
The backdrop to this state visit was the ongoing conflict between the United States and the Barbary states, autonomous provinces of the Ottoman Empire that rimmed the Mediterranean coast of North Africa. Soon after the Revolutionary War and the consequent loss of the British navy's protection, American merchant vessels had become prey for Barbary corsairs. Jefferson was outraged by the demands of ransom for civilians captured from American vessels and the Barbary states' expectation of annual tribute to be paid as insurance against future seizures. He took an uncharacteristically hawkish position against the prevailing thought that it was cheaper to pay tribute than maintain a navy to protect shipping from piracy.
The crisis with Tunis erupted when the USS Constitution captured Tunisian vessels attempting to run the American blockade of Tripoli. The bey of Tunis threatened war and sent Mellimelli to the United States to negotiate full restitution for the captured vessels and to barter for tribute.
Jefferson balked at paying tribute but accepted the expectation that the host government would cover all expenses for such an emissary. He arranged for Mellimelli and his 11 attendants to be housed at a Washington hotel, and rationalized that the sale of the four horses and other fine gifts sent by the bey of Tunis would cover costs. Mellimelli's request for "concubines" as a part of his accommodations was left to Secretary of State James Madison. Jefferson assured one senator that obtaining peace with the Barbary powers was important enough to "pass unnoticed the irregular conduct of their ministers."
James Madison, then Secretary of State, was charged with responding to Mellimelli's request for female companionship. Irving Brant, author of the classic six-volume biography on Madison, referred to the concubine incident. His reference illustrates Madison's (very) occasional wry sense of humor:
"The ambassador [Mellimelli] called at once [after his arrival] on Madison followed by the carrier of his four-foot pipe...The arrangements for him, he reported, were satisfactory, except for one omission. He needed some concubines. Madison supplied the deficiency with 'Georgia a Greek," and charged the cost to the State Department. 'Appropriations to foreign intercourse,' wrote Madison a few months later on another subject, 'are terms of great latitude and may be drawn on by very urgent and unforeseen occurrences.'"
This is absolutely no cause to suspect that concubines were, in any way, involved with the recent Iftar dinner at today's White House.
Footnotes
[1] http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2012/08/10/remarks-president-iftar-dinner
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iftar
[3] http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/fighting_words/2007/01/jeffersons_quran.html
[4] http://www.monticello.org/site/research-and-collections/tunisian-envoy
Lee Cary is a writer who lives in North Texas.
This article was published August 14, 2012 in the
American Thinker and is archived at
http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2012/08/m-obamas_sanitized_history_for_iftar_dinner.html#.UCpNc3KjNOc.mailto
EDITOR'S NOTE:
Some of the comments that added useful information.
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Casa please dont embellish the facts you will give moonbats something to deny and thus rubbish your whole arguments. The USURPER did NOT go to a Madrassa he went to an Indonesian STATE School and a Catholic run MULTI FAITH School. The fact that at BOTH he was registered and practiced ISLAM and that while he was in Indonesia you had to be an Indonesian CITIZEN t attend STATE schools is more than enough to condemn him. That and of course the fact that MANY of his Indonesian contemporaries have memories of the DEVOUT Mosque going Muslim Barry Soetero. |
| I see the problem! You're talking about Barry Soetero, he died a 'literary' death years ago. Our President is the composite figure, Barack Hussein 0bama. |
| 1. Thomas Jefferson's Koran is not considered to be a Koran because a Koran in a language other than Arabic cannot even be called the "Holy Koran," though apparently Obama, and his handlers, do not know this. Jefferson's copy was a translation that was appropriated by Representative Ellison for his own crude and transparent political ploy. 2. The early Americans "said" that they were not a Christian Country because the Muslims were actively attacking anything Christian (as they still do today), and the USA no longer had the protection of the British Navy after the American Revolution. 3. Jefferson DID NOT have an Iftar dinner, he was only accommodating the barbaric Muslim who couldn't feast until after sunset. 4. The very first official Iftar dinner at the White House was hosted by George W. Bush in 2001, after the 09-11 attacks to appease American Muslims. (which, in my opinion was a stupid idea by the Bush Administration). Bush also had an official stamp issued honoring Ramadan. (A stamp that I would never buy or use!) So, while Obama pretends that there has been a long and honored tradition between the USA and Muslims, this is simply not true. This "long tradition" started in the fall of 2001 by the misguided George W. Less than 11 years ago doesn't seem to be "traditional" to me, but only political correctness. |
| Pragmatist Muslims as a last resort always use the ploy of running and hiding behind the Ancient Arabic Dialect in which Koran is written. They do this because it is such a poor primitive ambiguous language where one word can have many meanings as opposed to say English where you have MANY words for one meaning. By this deceptive PLOY they hope to divert attention from and to hide the evil, nonsense filled , misogynous, turgid, repetitive, mistake laden, illogical, self contradicting , anti semitic , Arab Supremacist junk that is the Koran. |
| misterZ Thank you, Pragmatist. Western societies have no common ground with the barbaric cult created by the koran, a cult that practices religious genocide (jihad), religious discrimination (dhimmitude), murder (suicide and honor killing), pedophila (wives less than 10 yrs old), lying (taquiyya), polygamy (up to 4 wives), and misogyny (debasement of females). Oh, I forgot to mention: they want to kill us, every man, woman and child...children first. |
| Pragmatist Barry Soetero is extremely fond of putting his own slant on events and in fact INVENTING them just look at his disgusting IMAGINARY Autobiography with 'COMPOSITE' people and impossible timelines and events . He does however keep his OWN history a closely guarded secret spending MILLIONS of dollars on Lawyers fees to continue to HIDE all his School, College and Passport records. Also unlike Paul Ryan who IS a Christian . Barry HUSSEIN Soetero Kardashian merely CLAIMS to be one. So lets examine his CHRISTIAN credentials shall we. 50% of American dont know what Religion the USURPER is . What does that tell you? Well it tells you that 50% of American are stupid. Lets just look at his life history and family ties. Born to a Black, part ARAB, Kenyan, British Citizen, Muslim, alcoholic, polygamous, womanizing, State Department designated Undesirable Mooching Alien, absentee Father and an underage, to bestow her American Citizenship on him, mother and adopted by an Indonesian Muslim STEPFATHER. ALL members of BOTH his Paternal Families are MUSLIMS even his Kenyan Grandmother, who pre election his LYING Election Committee told us was a Christian, has not long returned (AFTER his election of course) from the completing the Haj at Mecca. He was brought up and schooled as a Muslim in BOTH the State and the Catholic run MULTI FAITH schools he attended in Jakarta. BTW when Barry was in Indonesia you had to be an Indonesian CITIZEN to go to State School, so maybe THATS why the Passport , College and Student application, results and loan records are very carefully and jealously HIDDEN(talk about Romney's Tax returns he has got nothing on what Obambi is HIDING). His contemporaries at school , one of whom is the current head of Garuda Airlines the Indonesian national airline,remember him as a devout Mosque going MUSLIM. He took KORANIC STUDIES, a subject ONLY Muslims take at school, and MENGAGI ( the study of the correct pronounciation of Koranic Arabic and which only DEVOUT Muslims usually bother with) at the Mosque, a fact he himself ADMITS in his book DREAMS (if ANYTHING in the LIARS book can be accepted). He is on record as saying ‘If the Political will goes against them I WILL STAND WITH THE MUSLIMS" and also "the Muslim call to prayer is one of the MOST beautiful sounds on earth" . He can also recite, and has frequently been heard to do so, the Shahada in perfectly accented Koranic Arabic , must be a result of his MENGAGI studies. According to Muslims anyone who says the Shahada, which calls Allah the PARAMOUNT God (which of course also betrays Islams POLYTHEISTIC roots or else why say 'Paramount' unless there are there other LESSER Gods????) and claims Mohammad as his messenger , IS A MUSLIM. So who is Barry HUSSEIN Soetero Kardashian America's first Gay, Celebrity USURPER President the man who tells us he has ‘ALWAYS been a Christian" well for a start he is a BLATANT BAREFACED LIAR. It also raises the questions :- "Can a 20 YEAR member of a RACIST, anti White, Anti Semitic, Anti American "Black Liberation Theology" Church, which is closer to Islam than it is to Christianity, be truly considered Christian? " and - "Why if he indeed is no longer Muslim , as he most definitely and conclusively was, have Muslims not issued a FATWA against him calling for his death as an APOSTATE." |
| diane+tx "The ambassador [Mellimelli] called at once [after his arrival] on Madison followed by the carrier of his four-foot pipe...The arrangements for him, he reported, were satisfactory, except for one omission. He needed some concubines. Madison supplied the deficiency with 'Georgia a Greek," and charged the cost to the State Department. 'Appropriations to foreign intercourse,' wrote Madison a few months later on another subject, 'are terms of great latitude and may be drawn on by very urgent and unforeseen occurrences.'" The forefathers of America were disgusted by the barbaric Muslims and their barbaric customs. The concubines of yesteryear are now called "temporary wives" today, in the year 2012! It seems that in the religion of Islam, the male is beyond committing any kind of sin. A man away from wife or wives just "marries" a temporary wife so that there isn't any adultery committed by him. What a fun religion for the guys, not so much for the gals. |
| > InfidelHere The Bush and Obama administrations' "War on Terror" by any name-has failed for a simple reason. It is because there is no such a thing as war on terror...it is simply a "feel good" PC term used today. Fact is that terrorism is a technique, a method, a weapon, a means to an end. Terrorism is not an enemy that can be named or identified, much less fought effectively. A "War on Terror" is a war on shadows, a war on nothing and on no one. It is a fool's errand. Terrorism is the "How", the "WHO" are true and devoted MUSLIMS and the "WHY" is the cult ideology called ISLAM! If we can't even call out the "WHY?" (cult ideology called ISLAM) and the "WHO?" ("good" muslims) that we are fighting along with understanding that a "War on Terror" is their tactic or "HOW?", then our idiotic PC self-deception will eventually defeat us!! |
| LEE Short history: Thomas Jefferson had the Koran translated into English so he would be better able to understand what he was dealing with when it came to the Barbary Pirates. The Marine Corps hymn states ..."shores of Tripoli"... because Jefferson sent the Marines to handle that situation. And, Jefferson DID NOT host an Iftar dinner. |
| rexprimoris Why is Obama constantly acting as an apologist for Islam, exaggerating its "contributions" to the nation's founding, whitewashing its sordid and violent history, distorting its aims and purposes as plainly evinced by the explict words of its texts and the conduct of a large number of its adherents, with every other word that comes out of his mouth? So incredibly naive, disingenuous and inappropriate. And I would submit that Islam was never so much a part of "our national story" as on the morning of 9/11/01. And, on numerous other dates, including the massacre of U.S. troops by their fellow soldier turned out in the open jihadist, Major Hasan, and the killing of troops at a recruiting station, and numerous attempted attacks that were foiled by either luck or law enforcement. Unfortunately, the passage of time, complacency and political correctness have all worked to prevent a valuable lesson about the true nature of Islam from being learned as a result of these crimes. |
| master Don't miss the latest episode of the exciting soap opera, "Usurper in the White House," starring Valerie Jarrett as President Jefferson and Barry Sotero as the concubine.... |
| Frank Livingston If you would like to read what our Founding Fathers thought about the Koran and Islam, go online and type in your search engine: "John Adams Koran, 1806, Alcoran of Mahomet" and you will come to John Adams Koran published in 1806. Look to the upper left side of the first page and you will see a blinking icon, "View the Book", right below it you will find, "Read it Online", link to it and read the 2nd and 3rd pages. It will tell you what they thought of the Koran and it isn't what the Islamists and media pundits tell us today. |