The most recent 20 comments posted to Electrolite by Derek James:

For some reason I have a hard time mustering up sympathy for a church that has to pay taxes. It's the selective enforcement that's the problem here, not the policy itself. You were right when you said:

This kind of story always provokes the suggestion that maybe nobody should get a tax break for calling themselves a church, which would have the salutary effect of getting the government out of the business of ruling on what is and isn’t religion.

That's exactly right.

Incidentally, The North Texas Church of Freethought, an atheist congregation, enjoys tax-exempt status.

Ken MacLeod writes: Mark Kleiman evidently thinks that Derek James has made a point by citing a handful of comments ('too many to ignore') on the BBC site urging acceptance of OBL's little ploy. The statistical validity of this can be left as an exercise for the reader, but I want to identify it as one of the moves in the Political Correctness of the Right (henceforth PCR): to dredge up comments at a site, signs at a demonstration, faces in the crowd, and pretend to believe that they are somehow representative and that if not instantly repudiated and denounced can be taken as endorsed.

It seems reasonable to assume that the BBC, being a fairly reputable news source, didn't make the quotations up, and tried to do a reasonable job of presenting a cross-section of received opinion. Maybe those assumptions are flawed. After all, you're right that it wasn't a scientifically-rigorous poll. It does seem to suggest that Kleiman's remarks weren't completely out of left field.

But leaping to the conclusion that anyone who disagrees with you is automatically a lackey of the Right, and then painting them with that broad brush, is a pretty weak-minded backlash.

If you ever thought there was the slightest possibility we would, then you don't know us at all.

Gosh, yes. How could anybody think such a thing...?

A sampling of comments from Europeans on bin Laden's "truce", from the BBC site. Most repudiate the stunt, but there are quite a few of these, too many to ignore:

Why be so stubborn and not negotiate with him? We have a golden opportunity to make peace then why not seize it. If a terrorist can wish for peace so can we civilized people too.
Saqib Ali, Denmark

To all the people here who talk about signs of "weakness" and the like, take a step back from your offensive, take a nap, maybe some coffee and relax. Then start thinking. The Man says "Stop spilling our blood so we can Stop spilling Your Blood". I really don't know if a more simpler statement can be made. Seize the moment.
Mohammed I, Birmingham, UK

It is amazing how easily all the war fanatics on both sides of the Atlantic reject simple truths! How easily they forget that it is Americans, Israelis and some European governments, against the wish of their voters, that invaded Arab territory and not the other way round. Shame on our new Western "civilisation"!
Theo, Athens, Greece

Why not? He asks to "stop attacking Muslims" and this should be done anyway.
Robert, Warszawa

As a British Muslim, I have no wish to see terrorist atrocities perpetrated by al-Qaeda anywhere in the UK, either on my beloved friends and family, or on anyone else. So, if British intelligence agencies can negotiate a truce, I can walk safely in London once again.
Hasna Fateh, London, United Kingdom

If the offer proves to be authentic, then Europe should consider it. It turns out that the "hatred against the Western world" is really a hatred against the US and their allies.
Dominic van der Zypen, Berne, Switzerland

Absolutely. This is an American "war" (their words!) and anything to remove the threat of terrorism from Europe should be welcomed.
Al, Bristol, England

Comment statistics for Derek James on the Electrolite blog

Total: 3 comments. View all these comments on a single page.