Whisper in a Certain Ear

Well, we should have suspected before, but the whole Koran desecration story was made up. The only such event involved a frustrated detainee, presumably Muslim himself, who flushed a few pages. Frank Warner has the scoop. He compares this rumor-driven event to the bombings in Istanbul. It reminds me that the current polio epidemic in North Africa has been triggered by a rumor that the vaccines were designed to make Muslim men infertile.

Some folks seem more susceptible to the provocation of ignorant lies than others. More likely to believe them, more likely to act on them, more likely to resort to violence, and more likely to get hurt by that violence.

5/16/2005 12:28 AM

UPDATE: Lee Smith has an amusing entry concerning Koranic etiquette in Slate.

5/17/2005 04:00 PM