An Indiana man convicted of setting fire to a mosque in Ohio told a judge on Wednesday that he committed the crimes because Fox News and conservative talk radio had convinced him that “most Muslims are terrorists.”
Randolph Linn, 52, accepted a plea deal in which he pled guilty to all charges in connection to setting a fire in the prayer room at the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo on Sept. 30. Under the deal, Linn is expected to serve 20 years in prison instead of 40.
“And I was more sad when Judge [Jack] Zouhary asked him that, ‘Do you know any Muslims or do you know what Islam is?’” one mosque member who attended the hearing recalled to WNWO. “And he said, ‘No, I only know what I hear on Fox News and what I hear on radio.’”
“Muslims are killing Americans and trying to blow stuff up,” Linn also reportedly told the judge. “Most Muslims are terrorists and don’t believe in Jesus Christ.”
Linn claimed that he had consumed 45 beers in the 6 hours before leaving his Indiana home to set fire to the mosque, which he had discovered while working as a truck driver.
After his arrest on Oct. 2, Assistant U.S. Attorney Ava Dusten said that Linn had told officers, “Fuck those Muslims… They would kill us if they got the chance.”
Linn is due back in court on April 16, 2013 for a formal sentencing.
A survey released by Fairleigh Dickinson University earlier this year determined that Fox News viewers were actually less informed that Americans who watched no news at all. In fact, at least seven studies in recent years have confirmed that Fox News viewers are more likely to be misinformed than other Americans.
… From her Gramercy Park apartment, where she had been without power for several days, Kelly Warren, 48, and a friend lugged 500 pairs of new socks and underwear bought at Walmart to the Rockaways. Her guilt at being largely spared the storm’s wrath was compounded by being up-close to the destruction of an area already struggling with poverty, she said. It made her only more keenly aware of privilege.
“I’m driving in my big Lexus coming down here,” Ms. Warren said, betraying her self-consciousness as she stood in a parking lot amid people riffling through donated clothing. I said, ‘Thank God the car is dirty.’ ”
Some people are astonished that a 92 percent white state, which is heavily agricultural, voted for President Obama in two straight elections, in contrast to states with similar demographics and similar economies like Kansas and Nebraska. But if you’re historical research takes you back to the 1930s, you won’t be surprised. Iowa was the organizational center of one of the most radical agrarian organizations in American History, the Farm Holiday Association.
The Farm Holiday Association was organized by small farmers who felt they were being driven into poverty by low prices for what they produced and by bank foreclosures on their farms when they couldn’t paid their loans or mortgages. On the verge of losing everything, they picked up their rifles and engaged in highway blockades, which prevented agricultural goods from being transported to markets until prices went up, and armed occupation of courtrooms to prevent judges from seizing farms that had gone into arrears. So large was the support for these actions among Iowa farmers that truck traffic ground to halt in large portions of the state, and judges were forced to extend payment periods on farm loans or drastically reduce their interest and principal.
These actions began in 1931 and continued into the early years of the New Deal when parity payments under the Agricultural Adjustment Act allowed many farmers in the state to have enough income to stave off foreclosure, but in the interim, they prevented mass impoverishment and displacement of the state’s family farmers.
I don’t know if today’s Iowa voters have a historic memory of these events, but it has been my experience, from my own family, that stories of resistance struggles do get passed down from generation to generation and can shape people’s identities long after the initial event took place.
What isn’t there to like about a week of live music events in New York City?
Just as some people look forward to Fashion Week in the Big Apple, I look forward to the CMJ Music Marathon. The four-day event brings 1390+ bands to 90+ stages throughout Manhattan and Brooklyn. You’ll go to see one band and catch about five others, whom you may end up liking, in the process. And sometimes there is free booze involved. You can’t go wrong!
Here’s a mini-round up of the bands I saw (all photos by me except for Making Movies):
there’s a chance we could meet under the likeness of summer and there’s a chance we could fall under the highlight of winter there’s a parked car that won’t let me over and there’s one thing i’ll regret, but you’d be the last
This trio is super approachable and I was able to chat them up about their first time in New York City. Goldy, the band’s drummer, and Sarah Lynn, who plays stand up bass and the banjo, had a blast and it showed. Recently signed to ORG music label, you can check out their EP, “Four Steps in Corsets,” here.
Kansas City’s Making Moviesat Desmonds: Bilingual indie rock? Yes, please. It’s as if this music was made for me– a kid born in the States to Colombian parents who instilled in me a love for amazing Afro-Latino music!
Founded by brothers Enrique and Diego Chi, Making Movies fuses Afro-Cuban rhythms with indie sensibilities and bilingual songs. Currently, legendary artist and producer Steve Berlin of Los Lobos, is producing their sophomore album. In the meantime, check out “Hangover Blues” off their EP (with its cool album art) Aguardiente here. Buy the EP on iTunes. Read my interview with lead singer and owner of awesome dreadlocks, Enrique Chi, at Sounds and Colours here. And check out this short video of them covering Aguanile, one of my favorite Hector Lavoe songs of all time, here.
New York City’sPillow Theory at Bowery Electric: Kelsey Warren from Pillow Theory and I go way back, when my brother, Richie, stumbled upon one of their shows in the late 90s. These guys have been rocking for quite a while and it only gets better. I’ve had friends compare them to Living Colour (whom they opened for at Central Park’s Summer Stage) and even Bush– both bands from the 1990s. True, yet Pillow Theory finds a way to keep their sound relevant. Seriously, they get better, they rock harder every time I see them. And Kelsey sounds like Seal. (Hear his solo album here.)
Kelsey tells me their critically acclaimed EP, MELTDOWN, will be re-released November 5th via Europe’s FILTER label “with some extra spices on it.” In the meantime, check out 2007’s Outpatience here. You can watch their latest music video for Blipsters & Buppies (yep, you guessed it–black hipsters and black yuppies) here.
Also at Bowery Electric:
From Brooklyn — The Disappointment: It’s quite the opposite. You’ll be pleased with this foursome that play rock-n-roll tinged with blues and soul. Reminded me of Black Crowes with a New York edge. Listen to their EP, Damn Righteous, here.
From New York City — Man on Earth: The folks at CMJ once described Man on Earth as “Glistening, wide-open arena rock with spirited choruses and a charged romanticism.” Yet I also hear something new wave in them (listen to “Sometimes.” You’ll see what I mean.) Add to that an energetic stage show and therein lies your reason for checking these guys out. (Bonus points for the lead singer who sang right into my camera!) Check out album, Things They’d Never Believe, here.
From Brooklyn — The Last Royals:If your lead singer’s style reminds me of INXS’ Michael Hutchence at all, I’m going to listen, and chances are, I’m going to like it. This Brooklyn duo, who make “beat-laden indie pop,” had the lower level of Bowery Electric intently watching as writer/singer/producer Eric James dropped down to the floor once or three times. According to their Wikipedia page, James and drummer Mason Ingram first met in 2010 while recording a record to benefit Restore NYC, a charity focused on ending sex trafficking and restoring the well-being and independence of foreign-national survivors. For that reason alone, you should give their stuff a listen here!
From New York City — Bear Ceuse: They describe themselves as LOUD ASS ROCK. Sometimes. But I also thought frat party, and not in a bad way! A fun way. Let’s just say this band had the girls dancing right at the front of the stage. Check out their tunes on Bandcamp here.
There are so many bands who played the CMJ Music Marathon to discover!! Visit CMJ’s website for a great roundup. Their site is a great resource for music year-round.
New Mix By DJ Smutlee in which he shares his favorite UK tunes from the past five years in an exclusive for BNTL. Stream below and download the mix over at BNTL.
A not-so-great cell phone pic of Christina Greer moderating the debate discussion at The Apollo.
I got to watch the second presidential debate at the world famous Apollo Theater in Harlem tonight. It was my first time there.
It’s a lot smaller than it looks on television, but it’s a sight to be seen. Especially the outdoor sign. It’s so bright!
One of Fordham’s political science professors, Christina Greer, was asked to moderate a panel discussion before and after the debate. The panel included Esther Armah (WBAI-FM), Herb Boyd (The New York Amsterdam News), Michael Brendan Dougherty (The American Conservative), Mark Riley (WWRL 1600 AM), William Tucker [The American Spectator], and Armstrong Williams (SiriusXM’s The Power).
My colleague Janet will blog about the discussion, which touched on several topics, but a comment by Dougherty of The American Conservative stayed with me. When asked what will the candidates NOT talk about tonight, he predicted they’d avoid: the unemployment of black males; the war on drugs, which leads to the incarceration of an overwhelming amount of black males; the use of drones, civil liberties and guns.
Well, he was wrong on guns, since it came up in a town hall question. Too bad neither candidate came up with a real solution or promised to get real “tough” on guns since we know there are a lot of people in this country who would lose their minds if you dared threaten the 2nd Amendment or the gun industry.
But, Dougherty was dead on about all the other things he predicted they’d avoid. Yet I am not surprised.
I’ll admit it–I’m a pessimist (let’s all be thankful I’m not a politician running the country). But I just can’t see ALL or even most of America demanding that the unemployment or incarceration of black males come up at the dinner table, let alone in a national discussion.
And did you notice none of tonight’s questions directly dealt with the poor or the disabled? Many people jumped on Mitt Romney for his 47% comment. But sometimes I wonder why most of us–the middle class that is so often mentioned in campaign stump speeches and debates–go right along ignoring issues that are not personally affecting us. (And are they not affecting us in the long run?)
So the headline of this story could have read, “Advocate of Weight Gain dies of Heart Disease,” (because it’s true) but there is more to the story. This guy started looking into weight gain when he was asked to participate in a conference and deduced that one could live longer if they gained about six pounds per year starting at age 40. Obviously, this went against the prevailing wisdom at the time.
“For some reason the idea has grabbed us that the best weight throughout the life span is that of a 20-year-old,” Dr. Andres said in a 1985 interview with The New York Times. “But there’s just overwhelming evidence now that as you go through life, it’s in your best interests to lay down some fat.”
Read the rest of this interesting obit in the New York Times here.
It’s so easy to dismiss addiction as just an excuse. You give second, third chances, and when the person doesn’t change, the hurt turns to anger. It’s tough.
As this CBS “On the Road” video proves, recovering addicts do deserve second chances. They don’t always work out. But, when they are ready, they do. And this small business owner is changing lives. Video below.
Mosque arsonist tells court: ‘I only know what I hear on Fox News’
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