PETER M. FRIEDMAN: THOMAS JEFFERSON AND THE MUSLIMS
THOMAS JEFFERSON AND THE MUSLIMS
By Peter M. Friedman
“You can have your own opinions,
But you can’t have your own facts!”
(Ronald Reagan)
http://twg2a.wordpress.com/tag/obama-lies-about-islam/
In the past three years there has been the “Big Lie” regarding the relationship between Thomas Jefferson and the Muslims off the coast of North Africa known as the Barbary Pirates. This lie has been perpetrated by no less than the President of the United States, Barack Hussein Obama.
On June 4, 2009, shortly after his inauguration as President, Obama gave a speech in Cairo, Egypt in which he stated,
Again, during the White House dinner in August, 2011, Obama said,
Is Obama lying, pandering to Muslims, or just plain ignorant? It is difficult to believe that a man who was a Muslim, and who studied the Koran for six years as a student in Indonesia, would be that ignorant of Islamic history. So he is either lying or purposefully pandering for Muslim approval, or both.
The truth is very clear. In fact, in October, 1785 Jefferson, who was our ambassador to France, together with John Adams, who was our ambassador to England, were very concerned about American merchant ships being captured by Muslims off North Africa and held for ransom. At the time there were only twelve such ships held by the Muslims, but it was a growing concern.
Jefferson and Adams both signed a letter addressed to the US ambassador in Algiers, Lamb. Since both Jefferson and Adams were completely unfamiliar with Islam and Muslims, never having had any communication or relationship with them, were vitally interested why Muslims thought it was acceptable to capture American vessels peacefully trading in the Mediterranean? (This was in 1785, fully two years prior to our Constitution Convention in September, 1787. America had no standing Navy, and the Marines had not yet been created.)
In early 1786, after receiving a response from Ambassador Lamb in Algiers specifically indicating that the Muslim holy book, the Koran, made it a religious obligation to seize the assets of non-Muslims until ransom [read tribute] would be paid, Jefferson purchased a 2-volume set of the Koran published in London in 1764 to find out more about Islam. This Koran was a reissue of the first English translation of the Koran done by Englishman George Sale in 1734. This Koran was used by the Black Muslim convert Congressman Keith Ellison from Minnesota to take his oath of office on when he was elected in 2006. When he and Nancy Pelosi were questioned how Ellison could use the Koran instead of the Bible they put out the lie that, since it was found in Jefferson’s library Jefferson must have been interested in Islam! The facts are very clear to the contrary.
In Thomas Jefferson’s autobiography he clearly states,
“Our commerce in the Mediterranean was placed under early alarm by the capture of two of our vessels and crews by the Barbary cruisers. I was very unwilling that we should acquiesce in the European humiliation of paying tribute to those lawless pirates.”
Jefferson put together an agreement that he intended to propose to the other country’s ministers in Paris to deal with the Muslim pirates in consolidation. Unfortunately, the other ministers said it was more in their best interests to keep paying the Muslims their tribute [read ransom] than using force to stop them.
On July 11, 1786, after receiving and reading the Sale Koran he purchased, Jefferson sent the following from Paris to John Adams in London,
“I very early thought it would be best to effect a peace thro’ [sic] the medium of war. The longer negotiation is delayed the larger will be the demand, this will depend on the intermediate captures: if they are many and rich the price [read ransom] will be raised. But I should prefer the obtaining it by war. 1. Justice is in favor of this opinion. 2. Honor favors it. 3. It will procure us respect in Europe, and respect is a safe-guard to interest. 4. It will arm the federal head with the safest of all the instruments of coercion over their delinquent members and prevent them from using what would be less safe.”
Jefferson continued,
“About 40. [sic] year ago [1746] the Algerines [read Algerians] having broke their treaty with France, this court sent Monsr. De Massac with one large and two small frigates, he blockaded the harbour [sic] of Algiers three months, and they subscribed to the terms he dictated. If it be admitted however that war, on the fairest prospects, is still exposed to uncertainty, I weigh against this the greater uncertainty of the duration of a peace bought with money, from such a people [read Muslims], from a Dey 80. [sic] years old, and by a nation [read United States] who, on the hypothesis of buying peace, is to have no power on the sea to enforce an observance of it.”
On December 8, 1801, right after Jefferson was elected President, he delivered his first speech to Congress. In it he stated,
“To this state of general peace with which we have been blessed, only one exception exists. Tripoli, the least considerable of the Barbary States, had come forward with demands unfounded either in right or in compact, and had permitted itself to denounce war, on our failure to comply before a given day. The style of the demand admitted but one answer. I sent a small squadron of frigates into the Mediterranean, with assurances to that power of our sincere desire to remain in peace, but with orders to protect our commerce against the threatened attack. The measure was seasoned and salutary. The bey had already declared war in form. His cruisers were out. Two had arrived at Gibralter. Our commerce in the Mediterranean was blockaded, and that of the Atlantic in peril.”
Jefferson continued,
“I wish I could say that our situation with all the other Barbary states was entirely satisfactory.”
This was in December, 1801. It was a full sixteen years after Jefferson’s initial request to Ambassador Lamb in 1785 asking why Muslims thought it was acceptable to capture American ships and hold them for ransom. During this sixteen year period, the problem with North African Muslim pirates continued unabated. It was again mentioned in Jefferson’s annual message dated December 2, 1806, a full twenty-one years after Jefferson became aware of the Muslim problem. Jefferson stated,
“The states on the coast of Barbary seem generally disposed at present to respect our peace and friendship; with Tunis alone some certainty remains. Persuaded that it is our interest to maintain our peace with them on equal terms, or not at all, I propose to send in due time a reinforcement into the Mediterranean, unless previous information shall show it to be unnecessary.”
However, in Jefferson’s annual speech on November 8, 1808, the final year of his Presidency, he stated,
“With the Barbary powers we continue in harmony, with the exception of an unjustifiable proceeding of the dey of Algiers toward our consul to that regency. Its character and circumstances are now laid before you, and will enable you [read Congress] to decide how far it may, either now or hereafter, call for any measures not within the limits of the executive authority.” [read Congress’s authority to declare war under our Constitution.]
In fact, Congress did declare war on the North African Muslim pirates, which was the very first war ever declared in the history of the United States!
In a circular way President Obama was correct when he stated,
The problem is that he is completely and factually wrong about the circumstances! One must ask why he lied? If it were not for Jefferson’s war with the Muslims the United States Navy and Marines would not have been created at that time. It is historically coincidental that, in view of our current situation of unlimited Muslim infiltration into America, the very first war declared by Congress was against Muslims!
Know the truth!
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