WAS Sonia Kruger right?
Like it or not, a lot of people certainly seem to think so. The Today Extra host has been subjected to an outpouring of abuse in the wake of her controversial comments on Monday calling for a ban on Muslim immigration.
But viewers, readers, and many in the general public have backed her.
“You’re speaking for the silent majority,” David Lang wrote on Today’s Facebook page. “It’s not racist to want to protect your children and grandchildren. So glad to see someone in the media with some sense.”
Sonia Ricci-Baldassarre said: “Have to agree with Sonia on this one. The fact of the matter is there was a lot less terrorism around the world before the borders were open. No one can deny that.”
Harvey Plumsted added: “Thank you for [having] the courage to say what needs to be said.”
Judging by thousands of similar comments on Facebook, news websites and callers to radio stations, there is widespread support for her views.
News.com.au understands Channel Nine was inundated with calls following Monday’s segment, the majority of which were expressing support.

The Australian public is not stupid. Of course they realise the vast majority of Muslims are peaceful — but the peaceful majority are irrelevant.
The Australian government has a responsibility to make decisions in the best interests of its people, and our immigration program has to be pragmatic, not idealistic.
As 2GB radio host Ben Fordham said in a spirited defence of Kruger on Monday, the world seems to be broken up into “feels” and “reals”.
“The ‘reals’ are those who live in the real world, the ‘feels’ are those who just want to feel good,” Fordham said. “The reals can see there is a rising number of Islamic terror attacks and this threatens our safety. The feels think that by highlighting this inconvenient truth, it’s going to hurt people’s feelings.
“You don't have to be a brilliant mathematician to know that the more Muslims you have in a country, the greater the chance of Islamic extremists being part of the cultural make-up.
“That’s not bigoted, it’s not discriminatory, it’s just fact.”

John Smith wrote on Jul 20^th, 2016 at 8:34pm:


Link?

a lot more disagree

Gordon wrote on Jul 20^th, 2016 at 8:47pm:


There was a civil war between Lebanese muslims and everyone else from Lebanon, the older generation of non muslim Lebanese hate Islam.

Gordon wrote on Jul 20^th, 2016 at 8:47pm:


There was a civil war between Lebanese muslims and everyone else from Lebanon, the older generation of non muslim Lebanese hate Islam.

‘Sonia Kruger isn’t evil’: Waleed Aly calls for a stop to the cycle of outrage

http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/tv/current-affairs/sonia-kruger-isnt-evil-waleed-aly/news-story/5968a1a4746c85b683212966b614c3f4?utm_content=SocialFlow&utm_campaign=EditorialSF&utm_source=News.com.au&utm_medium=Facebook

WALEED Aly has waded into the debate over Sonia Kruger’s controversial comments about banning Muslims, saying the Today Extra host “isn’t evil” and calling on people to stop the cycle of outrage.

In an editorial on Tuesday night’s edition of The Project, Aly questioned the national pile-on that follows situations like the one Kruger found herself in yesterday, comparing it to a spinning Gravitron.

“I could sit here and pull apart Sonia Kruger’s statement,” he said in the editorial, co-written by supervising producer Tom Whitty. “I could point out that Japan has had its share of terror attacks, or that the UN has attributed Japan’s low crime rate to low inequality and low gun ownership. I could point out that if Sonia is afraid, logically, as a woman in Australia, she has a much higher chance of being murdered by a man she knows, than a Muslim from another country.

“And I could do all of this with the best intentions, but really, all I’d be doing is encouraging the inertia of outrage that spins the Gravitron that we’re all on. I’d be fuelling the same cycle that has led to absolutely horrendous personal attacks on Sonia in the last 24 hours.

“Sonia Kruger isn’t evil. She’s scared and she’s trying to make sense of the world. Yesterday, she admitted to not feeling safe. How do you think she feels now? And how do you expect her to react?”

Arguing everyone is responsible for how these situations play out, Aly said there were two options to take when presented with an “outrageous opinion”: Destruction or construction.

“We can react emotionally, carelessly, and with little genuine critical thought, and we can destroy a perceived enemy in the hope that it will neutralise the threat that is making us feel unsafe,” he said. “This is the destructive choice.

“Or when we are presented with what we perceive as an outrageous opinion, we can consider what motivated that person, try to understand their fear, and empathise with how they came to their conclusion. The truth is, what motivates them, is fear. And fear is one thing we all share.”
Aly said he was “scared too” and “afraid for this country”, adding: “I’m terrified about what it is doing to my friends and family. Honestly, I’m scared about where I belong.”

Pointing out the fears he, Kruger and Pauline Hanson each have, Aly said it was important to understand how to deal with that fear. The host also pleaded to replace the cycle of viral outrage with forgiveness.

“You needn’t be calling for the incarceration of hundreds of thousands of innocent people, to act destructively,” he said. “While it feels good to choose destruction, right now I think we need to try construction. I’m not saying you should be silent in the face of bigotry. But when you do engage with someone you disagree with, I’m talking about assuming the best in people, showing others radical generosity in the face of their hostility. Which is the much harder choice because it demands much more restraint, patience, and strength.”