When President Obama addressed Muslims in his Cairo speech, he opened with the traditional Arabic greeting "As Salaam Aleikum." This shocking move prompted professional Islamophobe Daniel Pipes to conclude, "[b]y saying these words, Obama hints at his being a Muslim." Well, then I'm a Muslim too, because I've greeted people that way as well. Someone tell my rabbi that my Bar-Mitzvah was a complete waste.
Today we have more evidence that Obama's religion isn't what he says it is--referring to an upcoming meeting with the Pope, Obama said "Having a meeting with the Holy Father is a great honor and something that I'm very much looking forward to." Obviously, referring to Pope Benedict as "the Holy Father" means Obama is secretly a Catholic. The other possibility is that the president goes out of his way to respect the cultural mores of groups to which he doesn't belong, which is completely preposterous.
-- A. Serwer
