Hamas Uses Mickey Mouse to Teach Terror

Mickey Mouse: Jihad leader?

He looks like Mickey Mouse and sounds like Mickey Mouse, but what he’s saying is hardly the fairytale stuff of Disney. A Mickey Mouse look-alike named Farfur is teaching Palestinian children the ABCs of terror on Hamas’ official television station, Al-Aqsa TV.

On the weekly program “Tomorrow’s Pioneers,” Farfur and a young girl name Saraa’ tell children to pray five times each day and drink their milk, while urging the children to “resist” the “oppressive invading Zionist occupation.”

“Instead of being entertained, they’re being indoctrinated,” Itamar Marcus, the director of Palestinian Media Watch, told FOX News. Marcus says that “resist” is a Palestinian euphemism for terror. “Their message is of hatred toward Jews, hatred toward Israel, hatred to America as well,” Marcus said. “They make fun of Condoleezza Rice, they make fun of Bush.”

Here’s the video:

Making fun of Rice and Bush is certainly fair game, if a rather odd thing to do in a children’s program. Indoctrinating them to hate Jews and “resist” the “occupation” of their land, however, is almost the definition of fanaticism.

D.A. Ridgely goes with the obvious but clever, “This proves what a Mickey Mouse operation Hamas really is!”

I’ll counter with a “Why? Because we hate you! M-O-U-S-E.” Or, perhaps J-E-W-S.

On a more serious note, Ron Chusid observes, “As part of the multicultural viewpoint at Disney, Jasmine has been added to the Disney princesses. The Arab world is represented in Epcot by Moraco, with no signs of conflict with the west. If we can trust Fox News, Hamas has repaid Disney by stealing their most famous character, and using a Mickey look-alike to teach terrorism to kids. Walt would not approve.”

No, I suspect not.

via memeorandum

UPDATE: Ezra Klein counsels against getting too worked up over this:

What looks like a very successful indoctrination of a nine-year-old isn’t particularly indicative of a very successful indoctrination of a 15-year-old. I remember going to religious school when I was young and being rather devout, but I shed that credulity as the years went on, and so did most kids I knew. So I’m less worried about the children than I am unnerved by their parents and instructors, who seem utterly unconcerned with the sort of crazed spiritual bootcamp the kids are attending.

I agree, especially with the second point. Still, even if only a tenth of one percent or so of the kids are successfully radicalized here, it means that the cycle of death and destruction will continue.

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James Joyner
About James Joyner
James Joyner is Professor of Security Studies at Marine Corps University's Command and Staff College. He's a former Army officer and Desert Storm veteran. Views expressed here are his own. Follow James on Twitter @DrJJoyner.

Comments

  1. Tlaloc says:

    I’ve always said Disney was evil. Now we have the proof.

  2. legion says:

    Well, there are still (unsubstantiated) rumors about Walt’s ant-semitism, but I still don’t think this is quite what he had in mind…

  3. Anderson says:

    Hamas has just brought its own destruction upon itself.

    What Israel and the U.S. together could not accomplish, should be child’s play for Disney’s IP attorneys.

  4. Michael says:

    The Arab world is represented in Epcot by Moraco

    Except that in Morocco, Arabs are only the second largest ethnic group.

    But hey, if Bush can refer to Afghanistan and Pakistan as “arab” allies, I guess I can’t rag on Ron Chusid that much.

  5. Tano says:

    Are you joking?

    Teaching children to resist foreign occupiers is fanaticism?
    Tell me, what would you teach your children if the United States was under occupation by an infinitly stronger Mexican army that enabled the annexation of our land to Mexico?

  6. James Joyner says:

    Except that in Morocco

    Heh. I’ve never been to Epcot and just figured “Moraco” was a fictitious land. The connection to “Morocco” never occurred to me.

  7. James Joyner says:

    Tell me, what would you teach your children if the United States was under occupation by an infinitly stronger Mexican army that enabled the annexation of our land to Mexico?

    Payback’s a bitch?

    Seriously, I haven’t contemplated that scenario very much. I’m quite sure, though, that I wouldn’t teach them to strap bombs to themselves to murder innocent civilians in a market.

  8. D.A. Ridgely says:

    Hey, I also went with “If these people think Israel or the U.S. are evil, oppressive powers, just wait until Disney gets through with them!” The only power on earth more relentless than Disney’s lawyers protecting their intellectual property is college development offices who will dog alumni in hopes of contributions beyond the grave.

  9. Michael says:

    The only power on earth more relentless than Disney’s lawyers protecting their intellectual property is college development offices who will dog alumni in hopes of contributions beyond the grave.

    Now if we can just get terrorists to download movies and music illegally…

  10. Michael says:

    Heh. I’ve never been to Epcot and just figured “Moraco” was a fictitious land. The connection to “Morocco” never occurred to me.

    Seems a typo by the author. I guess we can’t expect him to know that it’s not majority Arab if he doesn’t even spell it right.

  11. Tano says:

    “I wouldn’t teach them to strap bombs to themselves to murder innocent civilians in a market.”

    The video seems not to be working, but as I read your description, there was nothing about teaching children to bomb markets, rather just resistance in general.

    “I haven’t contemplated that scenario very much”

    Yeah, well thats pretty obvious. It explains why your opinion on this matter is pretty specious. Obviously I cant speak for you, but I’ll wager that the overwhelming majority of Americans, especially conservative Americans, would certainly teach their children to resist a long-term foreign occupation force.

  12. Michael says:

    I’ll wager that the overwhelming majority of Americans, especially conservative Americans, would certainly teach their children to resist a long-term foreign occupation force.

    Are you implying that liberals Americans wouldn’t teach their children to fight for their freedom?

  13. Steve Plunk says:

    As a conservative I should chime in.

    No I would not teach my kid to resist. Resistance is a job for adults not children. If we continue to teach resistance what future do they have to look forward to? The Palestinian leadership has failed the children in so many ways including this display of evil.

    Many commenters have joked about this. I see this as further proof of the pointless pursuit of a Palestinian state. These people are so full of hatred we can never expect them to responsibly govern or co-exist with others.

    We should teach love, respect, and responsibility to our children. These people are teaching hate and dooming their children.

  14. Tano says:

    “No I would not teach my kid to resist. Resistance is a job for adults not children. If we continue to teach resistance what future do they have to look forward to? ”

    A future of being adult resisters.
    Which is something that would be obviously necessary if the occupation was long-term.

    “These people are so full of hatred we can never expect them to responsibly govern or co-exist with others.”

    They are filled with hatred of occupation and repression. As would be almost anyone.

  15. Tlaloc says:

    If we continue to teach resistance what future do they have to look forward to?

    Uh, can you name any successful resistances that haven’t taught their kids to oppose whatever it was they viewed as oppression?

  16. floyd says:

    Tano; **You mean we’re NOT!!… WHEW!!! Thanks for the info!**