Thursday, March 17, 2011

Watch Out for Urban Legends

A few weeks ago a particularly gory photograph was being sent around by email and presumably posted on various websites. It purported to show a Christian woman in (I think) Iraq who had had her heart ripped from her chest and a cross shoved down her throat by Muslim fanatics.

The photo was sent to us two or three times, and I hastily deleted it from our webmail to try to keep Dymphna from opening it. She has PTSD, and can be triggered by seeing gruesome images and reading tales of slaughter and horrific suffering.

I declined to post the photo for the same reason, and also because it was totally undocumented. Lurid images and tales that get passed around by email are more often than not urban legends of one sort or another. Remember the Palestinian “child brides”? That video is still being passed around with the inaccurate explanation attached.

As it turns out, in this case I was right to be suspicious, if what our commenter Benny D. says is correct:
The image of the woman with the cross down her throat in the youtube clip about Aramaean Christians is taken from the film “Inner Depravity” by Remy Couture, a gorefilm producer. Here’s the ‘just before’ shot.

It has NOTHING to do with Muslims murdering Christians!

This sort of thing is the Christian equivalent of the “blood libel” about Jews that remains so popular among Muslims. Retailing spurious information about Muslims can only harm our efforts. The truth, though often less gory, is sensational enough — why opt for sensational lies?

I recommend that any unsourced information, especially a photo forwarded by email, be researched to establish at least a minimum of plausibility before it is published or forwarded again.

Charles Johnson is notorious for using photographs (even doctored ones) without any context, as an indictment of persons or groups he opposes. We should decline to use the same tactics ourselves.

21 comments:

Zenster said...

The truth, though often less gory, is sensational enough — why opt for sensational lies?

Actually, Muslims too often provide the world with acts of equal or even greater depravity. So why the need to fabricate when these cretins will do the job for you? Wasn't slitting the throat of a three-month-old infant depraved enough?

Baron, it is to your eternal credit that you continue to post these corrections and clarifications whenever they come through. Far too many others simple dodge the bullet or duck out on their journalistic obligation to uphold the truth. All of which perpetuates a perception that the counterjihad is some ragtag flash mob instead of a growing and organized power to be reckoned with.

It is your strict adherence to a high standard of ethics, among many other worthy attributes, that keeps Gates of Vienna at the top of the blogsphere's heap for quality reporting on Islam and the counterjihad.

Thank You Very Much,

Zenster

filthykafir said...

What Zenster said; AMEN.

Anonymous said...

It would appear that Lukas Saliba was sucked in by it--see the transcript of his speech published by you earlier. Worth an annotation on that post?

Anonymous said...

Zenster:
(though it is unrelated to pictures)
Wasn't slitting the throat of a three-month-old infant depraved enough?
...and celebrating it, too, with those famous Gaza sweets

Baron Bodissey said...

Salome --

Yes, that's probably a good idea. I'll update it.

1389 said...

It isn't only Muslims who torture and kill Christians.

Sometimes it's done by miscreants from a (supposedly) Christian background.

Nor are the perpetrators exclusively males.

Woman arrested in Kentucky for torture, murder of Bosnian Serbs

1389 said...

I agree with Zenster's comment above!

madeleine7 said...

The little Jewish baby girl did not only have her throat slit. SHE WAS DECAPITATED!!!!! I pray that God consoles and comforts the three orphaned siblings and all the family. islam is much more evil than most people realise!!!

Hesperado said...

The little Jewish baby girl did not only have her throat slit. SHE WAS DECAPITATED!!!!!

I've found frequently that the euphemism "throat was slit" or the generic "was stabbed" is used to describe various Islamic beheadings -- e.g., the Van Gogh slaughter (Mohamed Bouyeri was trying to saw off his head when a policeman ran up to him), the Buffalo Muslim who beheaded his wife, and many more. Indeed, recently here on GOV on a cover story about the Catholic monks slaughtered by Muslims in Algeria in 1996, no mention was made (and rarely is it ever mentioned elsewhere) that the monks were beheaded.

Beheading and bodily mutilation are important for Muslims -- they do not do it merely for gory kicks; it has doctrinal significance (as everything else they think, feel and do has).

Gregory said...

Concerning Charles johnson: First off; I hate the mealey mouthed dink.("hey Charley, your pictures suck!)..But, I say, what is good for the goose is good for the gander. This moral one-upmanship is not furthering the conservative cause at all as far as I can see.

Hebes Chasma said...

Can anybody illuminate me on Palestinian child brides? I remember to have seen a video where Hamas apparently celebrates marriage of many men to children girls, but never investigated the matter further. Thank you very much in advance.

Zenster said...

madeleine7: The little Jewish baby girl did not only have her throat slit. SHE WAS DECAPITATED!!!!!

Thank you for clarifying, madeleine7. I did not feel inclined to fill my mind with the nightmarish images that were published on the net and, therefore, was obliged to go by whatever written accounts were on offer.

While my mind still reels at the heinousness of such an act, I have long ago learned to accept as fact that there is no cruelty, no barbarity, no savagery, no brutality, no blood lust, no ultimately sadistic act that Muslims will not joyously seek to outdo by orders of magnitude.

If the 9-11 atrocity taught me anything, it is that.

I can only suppose, as Hesperado alluded to, that slaughtering people like animals makes these cretinous Muslims feel ever so slightly human in some insanely perverted manner. Perhaps it is the only way they have of summoning forth the slightest sensation of being human in the midst of what, even they must surely know, is their utterly diabolical malignancy.

Zenster said...

Gregory: Concerning Charles johnson … This moral one-upmanship is not furthering the conservative cause at all as far as I can see.

For what it's worth, I am no expert on this kerfuffle and am contributing my comment in a strictly personal context.

That said, from all I understand, Charles Johnson caused this web site more than a little grief and was at least partially responsible for helping to orchestrate a general boycott of this forum by media and readers alike. If anything, these malicious acts by Johnson established a false tenor that set the stage for Pajamas Media's eventual expulsion of Gates of Vienna which only appeared to contribute further gravity and credibility to what were ultimately shown as contemptibly false allegations.

The level of wholly unjustified rancor along with, just as often, blatantly false or insupportable smears and accusations that were brought to bear against Gates of Vienna make this picayune smidgen of gloating equivalent to an act of almost saintly self-restraint.

My 2¢.

Anonymous said...

Well I know for a fact that I do not deny the holocaust or sympathise with those who do. I know for a fact that Charles Johnson exploited time-differences between California and UK zones to make it appear that I had not responded to a question about this. So these two points together mean I know for a fact that Charles Johnson has no interest in reality only some trip of his own. What that is and why he does what he does is one of those pointless mysteries like where do flies go in winter. All we need to know is his opinion is worthless.

Meanwhile...exaggerated stories etcf: as far as I can see its a good psychological warfare trick. Feed your opponents a story they want to hear. Wait until they report it as a horrible fact. Then reveal it was a hoax. Undrmines their authority and even their own confidence in what they believe. So fact checking is indeed important and "gilding the lilly" a bad move.

PatriotUSA said...

Baron, I have posted this at PC.
I received the same image numerous
times but also declined to publish it. Something did not set right with me about the image and I later learned from very credible sources that it was bogus. I never though about posting a note about this. A hat tip to you for doing this.

You and Dymphna are to be commended for the very high ethics and standards you set long ago here at G Of V. I owe you both much.I have learned a lot from just being here for a few years now.

Zenter and others comments are spot on and we who are in the
CJ movement against islam and sharia law know that any and all
gaffes we may commit will be used
against us.

Juniper in the Desert said...

Baron, I re-blogged your article and someone replied with this:

"The image of the woman with the cross down her throat is taken from the film “Inner Depravity” by Remy Couture, a gorefilm producer. Here’s the ‘just before’ shot":

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_FpbjdEeftG8/SLtDwRhx5CI/AAAAAAAAALE/i7vM2Oqr1do/s400/EXORCIS3.jpg

Juniper in the Desert said...

Message to Hebe Chasma: I do not believe those were child marriages of Hamas. I read about them at least a year ago and there was a complete explanation but I have long ago lost it.

Jewish Odysseus said...

My friends, we are in a constant struggle to enhance our own credibility vs the lamestream/jihadi media. Therefore, we only help ourselves by standing rigorously for fact, context, verification--and corrections, when necessary.

The truth has a value on its own, but even if it didn't--we are divinely enjoined against "bearing false witness."

In any event, the reality of modern (and ancient) jihad is truly more gruesome than any sane person's imagination.

breakingthisdown said...

heyyy, just finding this. was on another link just now where some guy was setting some absolute effing idiot straight as she was posting this pic and claiming it was real. can't remember the dude's name. i was just so appalled that they'd do something like that, though, you know? as if things are difficult enough, they go and make sh*t up like this! i mean, she had a full-on 'story'.

i believe she's just taken it down but as i'm not too internet savvy, could it just be that i've been blocked from seeing it? i'm a doofus, i know. =/ i've tried clicking the link a few times and it's like it's dead or somethin'.

here's the link:
My Title

hey, thanks so much for having this out there. i just knew it couldn't have been true. know bad things happen, but jeez. *shushes*

breakingthisdown said...

oops. you know what i meant. =) take care, guys.

breakingthisdown said...

bleh, sorry. i don't mean this pic, of course, but the gory one. okay, now i'm done, LOL.