Poll shows America has gone xenophobic

[HereSince1628]

Well, this dandy piece of information from MSNBC...Republicans and those self-identified as religious want Muslim rights curbed in the US...

The Associated Press
Updated: 9:57 p.m. ET Dec. 17, 2004ITHACA, N.Y.

-Nearly half of all Americans believe the U.S. government should restrict the civil liberties of Muslim-Americans, according to a nationwide poll.

The survey conducted by Cornell University also found that Republicans and people who described themselves as highly religious were more apt to support curtailing Muslims’ civil liberties than Democrats or people who are less religious.

'Disturbing news'
Researchers also found that respondents who paid more attention to television news were more likely to fear terrorist attacks and support limiting the rights of Muslim-Americans.

“It’s sad news. It’s disturbing news. But it’s not unpredictable,” said Mahdi Bray, executive director of the Muslim American Society. “The nation is at war, even if it’s not a traditional war. We just have to remain vigilant and continue to interface.”


<snip>


http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6729916/

Sorry if this is a dupe, search on the link brought back no hits and the topic is horrendous.

[xchrom]

1. shocked and awed?

not so much.

[Disturbed]

2. Camps in the near future?

This would not shock me.

[illflem]

4. Camp?

If they have their way it'll be gas chambers

[demnan]

3. I remember after 9/11 that some Muslim women were afraid

to wear the scarf. I work in an area where there are a lot of military too, and this is actually about a mile or so from the Pentagon. A young cashier at the eatery in the building put on a baseball cap for a while (I guess that looked more American and less threatening than a scarf?)

Well what I remember most was the military guys in the line checking out, how they encouraged her and tried to make her feel more comfortable. She started wearing her scarf again the following month. I was proud to be an American when I saw how graciously these uniformed men reacted in a sympathetic human way. I can't possibly believe that people in this country could change so quickly when instinctively these military guys knew how to act and what to do. And I'm sure a lot them were Republicans, too.

Of course this is in the D.C. area, perhaps people are more tolerant here than they are in rural areas.

[dbt]

5. Poll shows Murkins believe what they see on Corporate TV.

There's your trouble!

:freak:
dbt

[bowens43]

6. It's a lot like Germany in the late 30's

Except it was the Jews, not the Muslims. There is no difference between our current leadership and Hitlers Third Reich and there is little difference between the German nationalists of the late 30's and the nationalists in the US today. Still we have people , even here on DU, who refuse to see the parallels. If the idiot arranges another domestic terrorist attacks the camps will be opened and the internments will begin.

[Poppyseedman]

7. Very disturbing news

if true.

I'll like to see the methodology for the poll.

I have found in the past polls conducted by universities / political groups tend to have a built in bias and are used as a tool to push an agenda both on the left and right side of the ideological divide.

[gottaB]

11. link to full report

http://www.news.cornell.edu/releases/Dec04/Muslim.Poll.bpf.html

[Poppyseedman]

13. Thanks

I looked for it and could not find it.

[Poppyseedman]

16. See table # 7 and 9

Nearly half of all Americans believe the U.S. government should restrict the civil liberties of Muslim-Americans, according to a nationwide poll.
MSNBC lead sentence

Actually according to the poll 52% of American want to restrict the civil liberties of Muslim-Americans in some form or fashion. That is, of course, if you mean we do absolutely nothing in the way on national security concerning all Muslim-Americans for the other 48%

The poll itself is not that alarming at all, pretty much lines up with the way the country currently breaks down politically. The attack on 9/11 left a big mark on the USA and the Muslin community needs to do a better job of denouncing terrorism as a whole. To build trust

MSNBC hypes the poll to make it sound 50% of Americans is distrustful of all Muslims.

Xenophobic is way too strong a word

[gottaB]

18. I posted table 7 in the lbn thread because it breaks it down

I agree that the headlines are potentially misleading. That said, I'm not sure that "xenophobic" is too strong a word. Consider the question: "All Mulsim Americans should be required to register their whereabouts with the federal government." 27% of respondents agreed with that. I find that a little shocking, and can think of no better explanation for such an opinion than xenophobia.

The second question was "Mosques should be closely monitored and surveilled by U.S. law enforcement agencies." 26% agreed. I could imagine a charitable interpretation: Do you mean all mosques, or just in some cases? With a warrant signed by a judge or other sorts of judicial review? That would also apply to churches and synagogues and other gathering places, so Muslims are not being singled out? But given the level of distrust shown by the response to the first question, I'm inclined to think that xenophobia is the best explanation for what seems to me to be a high level of support for that statement.

[Poppyseedman]

20. Poll shows America has gone xenophobic

Certainly the people in the poll exhibit xenophobic.

My point in retrospect was about the thread heading, which says America is gone down that dark road, which I categorically disagree with.

There still is about 70 plus percent who don't think like that

[gottaB]

24. "70 plus percent"--I'm glad I hedged and said "potentially misleading"

70% plus would be true for any one of the questions, but the 44% number does have a significance. As it was worded in body of the report, "nearly half of all respondents (44%) supported one of the possible restrictions on Mulsim American civil liberties." Possible restrictions. Each question could be viewed otherwise, but as I suggested, an overly charitable interpretation seems unwarranted.

By my reading the report shines a light on a broad anti-Muslim bigotry which, though not a majority viewpoint, is shared by a rather large portion of the populace, and is aggravated by religious leaders, rightwing politicians, and cable news shows.

America has gone down the dark road to xenophobia? I can see where one could have a reasonable disagreement, but that's not an argument I can categorically dismiss. I'd be interested in seeing more data.

[HereSince1628]

19. xenophobia (zen-uh-foh-bee-uh,

xenophobia (zen-uh-foh-bee-uh, zee-nuh-foh-bee-uh)

An unreasonable fear, distrust, or hatred of strangers, foreigners, or anything perceived as foreign or different.

xeno-refers to "other" as in foreign, phobia refers to fear, typically an unreasonable fear.

1) the survey suggests a simple majority of Americans feel this way.
Consequently...America has gone.

2) Islam represents a minority culture something which seems foreign to the majority.

3) Generalizing fear of some terrorists to fear of all muslims is irrational.


Xenophobic actually seems accurate and well chosen.

[booksenkatz]

23. I agree--don't forget to add "Freedom Fries" & Francophobia to the mix nt

[Malva Zebrina]

8. I believe it

After all,more than half voted for Bush.

[Flammable Materials]

9. America is (almost) WORSE than "The Siege".

Once we get the internment camps, that's it.

[cali]

10. Meanwhile, in fweeperville

it's no mere 44% that believe in restricting the rights of muslim americans, it's more like 95%, and they aren't satisfied with merely restricting liberties, they're looking towards a final solution- genocide. No kidding. It's sobering. The drum beat to kill all muslims, including americans has reached a horrid crescendo over there. The 5% objecting and trying to speak truth to insanity over there are hopefully getting their eyes opened.

[Nimrod]

12. Never underestimate stupidity

I know you're not kidding.

I'm reaching the point I'm half-assed hoping for a superflu pandemic or some such. We're getting too sick to survive.

[cali]

15. I had an anthropology prof

who once said that the only hope for humanity was to bomb ourselves back to the stone age and start over. I was horrified at the time. I'm not now. And not only can we not underestimate the stupidity of people, we'd best not underestimate the capacity for hate, either. It appears that is many of us, the need for an enemy is as great as the need for physical sustenance.

[Nimrod]

17. Need for an enemy - I completely agree

It's called demonization. If you have no one to focus your bad feelings on (and blame for everything negative going on in your life) you might be forced into self-examination, and we as a species do NOT like that. We have extremely fragile senses of self-worth and desperately need someone or something to feel morally superior to.

We live in a nation where a week and a half ago, the newspaper printed a LTTE from a guy explaining how France took million-dollar bribes from Osama to oppose our invasion of Iraq. This is the single stupidest idea imaginable, but it allowed this individual to claim the moral high ground over war-opposers, terrorism, Iraq, AND France. So who cares if it was a pile of reeking garbage, right? That's a hell of a high pedestal to get to sit on.

Hell, I'm feeling more and more like we should bomb ourselves back to the Mesozoic and not even BOTHER to start over.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

22. the need for an enemy is as great as the need for physical sustenance.

One of the most intriguing quotes I have ever had the pleasure of hearing from a Russian diplomat....

http://www.ucla.edu/chancellor/scholar/scholar_rethink_4.html
And so it is not surprising that in the wake of 9/11, we have a "War on Terrorism." Terrorists are the principal adversary we have longed for all through the nineties. It has been difficult for Americans to have a foreign policy without an adversary.

And so it is not surprising that in the wake of 9/11, we have a "War on Terrorism." Terrorists are the principal adversary we have longed for all through the nineties. It has been difficult for Americans to have a foreign policy without an adversary. The Soviets had it right when they said, "We are going to deprive you of an enemy." They understood that that would make things difficult for us. Now we focus on terrorists and terrorist organizations. We should focus, in particular, on those that possess, or seek to possess, weapons of mass destruction. That is why it makes sense for us to attempt to eliminate Al Qaeda and to prevent the emergence of a successor.

[G_j]

14. this raises a point

for those who say we must stay and "fight".
We are fighting ignorance. How do we change this grim situation?

[OutsourceBush]

21. Republican values: If you are not white, you are not right