Appearing at The Jaundiced Eye, the Independent Bloggers’ Alliance, and My Left Wing.
Muslim Terrorist or Paisley Scarf Wearing Foodie?
I was venting my spleen last night about Dunkin’ Donuts idiotic decision to cave to Michelle Malkin and her band of crazies in the right wing blogosphere. And the inimitable skippy stopped by to give me an action alert.
As skippy points out, by playing Malkin’s game, Dunkin’ Donuts not only insults one-time bohemian college students, like myself, who wore the ultra-hip keffiyah, but THE ENTIRE ARAB WORLD.
From Epicurious:
Of course, Malkin glosses over the fact that the kaffiyeh is a staple of Arab wardrobes all over the Middle East (Jordanians prefer red-and-white ones, Kuwaitis all-white ones, etc.), not just among those using violent means to create a Palestinian state. Simply saying that anyone who wears a kaffiyeh is demonstrating solidarity with Islamic terrorists is like saying anyone who wears a beret believes in Cuban-style communism as espoused by Che Guevara. True, Arafat made it his trademark, but it’s critical to remember that to a vast number of Arabs, the kaffiyeh’s basically just another kind of hat, and that to equate kaffiyeh-wearers with terrorists sets a dangerous precedent in a country that should have learned by now the pitfalls of underestimating the complexities of Arab (and Muslim) cultures.
Unless Malkin actually is saying that all kaffiyeh-wearing Arabs are jihadists and terrorists, which is certainly something she’d conceivably say.
But let’s face it. That’s how Malkin and her ilk think, as they stoke racist hate against Muslims… and some Sikhs and others who have the misfortune of looking somewhat Arabic. And now Dunkin’ Donuts corporation has joined the appallingly ignorant in legitimizing prejudice.
we say, what’s good for the batshit insane is good for the logical.
here’s dunkin’ donuts contact form. why not email them and let them know that you will no longer be buying their donuts or coffee or any product because their actions, at worst, in effect condemn all who wear scarves, and at best, are just plain looney?
be nice…and point out what epicurious says…a kaffiyeh is merely a piece of wardrobe worn by most people in the arab world, and to ascribe a political philosophy to its usage is moronic.
and we don’t need to buy from moronic corporations.