Little has been heard from the renowned and notorious novelist Salman Rushdie since Aug. 12, 2022, the day that he was stabbed 15 times and severely injured while onstage at the Chautauqua Institution in New York. But now he has given his first interview since the attack, and it has become clear that even now, six months after he was viciously attacked and fully 34 years after the fatwa against him was first issued, the Western world would still prefer to ignore and deny why exactly he has been targeted and what the implications of this targeting are. In light of the fact that Rushdie is the most famous victim of Islamic blasphemy laws in the entire world, this willful ignorance is as inexplicable as it is inexcusable.
Rushdie has lost the use of his right eye, and one of his hands was severely injured. Asked how he was doing, Rushdie replied wryly, “Well, you know, I’ve been better.” Then he added, “But, considering what happened, I’m not so bad. As you can see, the big injuries are healed, essentially. I have feeling in my thumb and index finger and in the bottom half of the palm. I’m doing a lot of hand therapy, and I’m told that I’m doing very well.” He said that he could not type “very well, because of the lack of feeling in the fingertips of these fingers.” Nonetheless, he is still working: “I just write more slowly. But I’m getting there.”
On the darker side, the stabbing was, understandably enough, traumatizing: “There have been nightmares—not exactly the incident, but just frightening. Those seem to be diminishing. I’m fine. I’m able to get up and walk around. When I say I’m fine, I mean, there’s bits of my body that need constant checkups. It was a colossal attack.”
It was indeed, and it has been perfectly clear why Rushdie was attacked from the very moment it happened. The motive for an attack on Salman Rushdie has been clear since Feb. 14, 1989, when Iran’s Ayatollah Khomeini wrote:
In the name of Allah… I am informing all brave Muslims of the world that the author of The Satanic Verses, a text written, edited, and published against Islam, the Prophet of Islam, and the Qur’an, along with all the editors and publishers aware of its contents, are condemned to death. I call on all valiant Muslims wherever they may be in the world to kill them without delay, so that no one will dare insult the sacred beliefs of Muslims henceforth. Whoever is killed in this cause will be a martyr, Allah willing, Meanwhile, if someone has access to the author of the book but is incapable of carrying out the execution, he should inform the people so that [Rushdie] is punished for his actions.
May peace and blessings of Allah be upon you.
That was a long time ago. However, on the thirtieth anniversary of the fatwa, Khamenei wrote: “Imam Khomeini’s verdict regarding Salman Rushdie is based on divine verses and just like divine verses, it is solid and irrevocable.”
Of course, neither Khomeini nor Khamenei attacked Rushdie at Chautauqua. The man who did, Hadi Matar, explained why he did it in no uncertain terms: “I respect the ayatollah. I think he’s a great person.” But Rushdie? Not so much: “I don’t like the person,” Matar said, referring to his victim. “I don’t think he’s a very good person. I don’t like him. I don’t like him very much. He’s someone who attacked Islam, he attacked their beliefs, the belief systems.”
So here is someone who stabs a man who has a death sentence on his head for insulting Islam, and who expresses his admiration for the person who issued the death sentence, and his disdain for his victim because he “attacked Islam,” and despite all this, the UK’s Daily Mail repeated the words we have heard so very often about Islamic jihadis: “Matar’s motive for the attack remains unclear.”
Matar’s motive “remains unclear”? It was never unclear in the first place. It remains unclear to those who have no knowledge of the fatwa against Rushdie or of the death sentence for blasphemy in Islamic law. It remains unclear to those terminally blinkered Westerners who insist, in the teeth of ever-mounting death counts, that Islam is a religion of peace that couldn’t possibly contain any teachings that would move someone such as Hadi Matar to try to kill Salman Rushdie. But it is not now and has never been unclear to those who are willing to face reality.
This denial and willful ignorance is dangerous, because it fosters complacency in the face of a genuine threat. But the Daily Mail, and Western society in general, will likely not realize that until it is far too late for them.
The Daily Mail was right wing a decade ago, now it is as leftist as the Biden junta.
The Iranian islamic dictators have joined forces with the communist dictators in the UN where unelected elites decide that White people are all racist and the world has too many of us and we need to be wiped out starting with Israel.
Every single one of them are selfish individuals, even the brainwashed islamic terrorist who tried to murder Rushdie, he didn’t do this because he loved islam, he did it for the reward of 72 virgins in heaven, irrational and illogical yes, but who decides what’s rational and illogical in an increasingly complex world?
Pray tell, how is sacrificing your SELF, your mind, your body, your life, your earthly well-being, for an imaginary, non-existing God in a non-existing Paradise, with 72 non-existing virgins, a SELFISH thing to do?
To sacrifice your SELF for Allah is by definition SELF-LESS-NESS!
Who decides what’s rational? It is not a matter of “who” but of “what”. To be rational is to use reason to discover the facts of reality. To be rational is to follow reality.
Why are you so religious, what part of reality you afraid of? Are you afraid of the reality death? Of being independent? Are you afraid that if you fall on hard times mankind is so depraved no one would volunteer to help you and give you charity?
Look at the success of websites like “Go Fund Me”. Even now, when Americans and Europeans are being financially crushed by their altruist-socialist governments, sites like “Go Fund Me” are flooded with donations. Imagine how much more good will and generosity there would be if people had the freedom and the selfish and moral right to keep the income they work for and earn.
the God of the bible may be an imaginary non-existong being to YOUR pea brain. But He exists in spite of your railings, as has been proven countless times over history. Your decision.
On the other hand those who worship and slave for and to tht false construt promoted by a promiscuous sexual devaint who loved sword and blood spilled more than peace and liberty ARE deviants just like their ptwisted leader, and the twisted operative who tried to kill Mr. Rushdie.
If NOBODY decides what is rational and reasonable then EVERYBODY decides.
Khomeini has something in common with another America-hating fool. Both issued the call against their betters.
Although, *Biden’s fatwa (from Independence Halll) was against MAGA conservatives, it’s parallels are uncanny.
AntiFa/BLM street-trash have been attacking their betters for years. Now they have the official nod, and assurance of Kamala’s bail out fund.
They can even viciously attack a pregnant woman, and still get a pass.
In 2016 a pregnant supporter of Trump was slammed against a brick wall. George Floyd pistol whipped a pregnant woman and shoved a loaded pistol in her gut.
The leftist got away unhindered (he was filmed), and Floyd got sainthood for overdosing on fentanyl in custody.
Islamic jihadists, MS-13, pedophiles, & cartel thugs are welcomed in with the hordes of welfare seekers because Sleepy’s handlers believe they’ll all vote straight democratic (as long as they’re dumped in our neighborhoods instead of Martha’s Vineyard, of course.)
MAGA law-abiding citizens & parents attending schoolboard meetings, are the ones unwelcome & targeted accordingly. Sleepy made that clear during his bullshit Reichstag speech.
Khomeini made his target clear. (Since Rushdie survived, Ilhan will have to hope for someone to do something next time.)
Just a note. When someone tells you they will kill you, believe them. When a powerful entity offers a reward for your termination to all the world, ya might wanna consider that a threat. I so enjoy it when leaders get others to do their bidding with the promise the doer’s will get a reward that the leader will never have to provide! Genius! All action, no cost!, this all sounds kinda “Culty” to me, Jim Jones was a piker!
Mr.Rushdie has been in hiding since the fatwah was first proclaimed by the head cheese of islam. I was very surprised to learn of the attack on him because I was convinced he was stll laying low.
I’, pretty certain he is being more careful. Yet he persists in his excellent writings. Aft er the fat wah=wah=wah I went out and located/procured a copy of this book. I had ot realised what it was until the decree demanding his death. Have not seen that book anywhere since that time.
War is a Congressional prerogative. The Constitution awards Congress a monopoly.
An actual, legally elected President In the old USofA would find a actual Attorney General appointing a Special Council.
Fortunately, the Biden Mandate authorized discretionary lattitude. We’ve been freed from the paralysis of subservience to scribblings upon ancient parchments.
Hallelujah.
Very well said.
I left a comment stating: Well said. When I hit Post Comment I got the message that it was too short and to go back.
I went back and added Very to the beginning and it accepted it. Two words are too short, three are OK. Ha ha. Go figure!!!