Daniel Wallis of Reuters reports that Kenyan elders who are hopping mad over the release of the photo of Barack Obama in "traditional Somali attire" and may impose a fine against Hillary Clinton, "payable in cattle, goats, or camels," over the outrage. You can tell it's a Reuters story by this mention in the third paragraph: "Obama has battled a whispering campaign by fringe elements who wrongly say he is Muslim."
Reuters is playing the same Obama '08 game: it's outrageous that Obama would be mistaken for a Muslim, but wow, Muslims really want to demand payment in livestock for anyone who would disparage their beloved Obama. No one is allowed to say anything anti-Obama. Wallis lines up outraged Muslims, foreign and domestic, to denounce Hillary, who, typically, denies authorizing release of the photo, but can't vouch for all of her staff members' activities on their free time. To the Goats and Camels Court:
"We will go ahead with this case whether Senator Clinton or Democratic party leaders turn up or not," said Mohamed Ibrahim, a member of the clan that hosted Obama during his trip. "But this whole thing can be avoided if only an apology is made."
The late father of the Democratic frontrunner was from western Kenya.
Many in the east African country support Obama the way the Irish idolized President John F. Kennedy in the 1960s -- as one of their own who succeeded beyond their wildest dreams.
"The clan he was with have every right to be offended," said Hussein Ali, a 32-year-old unemployed man outside the main Jamia Mosque in the capital Nairobi.
"Obama's enemies are trying to portray him as a terrorist, saying all Muslims, and especially Somalis, are dangerous men."
...."We suspect the intent behind releasing this picture now, just before Tuesday's very critical vote," said Omar Jamal, head of the St Paul, Minnesota-based Somali Justice Advocacy Centre.
His lobby group, which works with Somali immigrants in the United States, has also demanded an apology from Clinton's camp.
"They are trying to make a link between a man who could be the next U.S. president and a country with al Qaeda terrorist activities. They're trying to tell citizens, look who you might be voting for," he told Reuters by telephone.
"Everyone is very upset. It's outrageous and undermining."
That flock of outraged people would seem to include Reuters, the wire service that can't seem to find a definition for the word "terrorist." Overall, the story reads like a print version of the Saturday Night Live skits, a long demand for an Obama-pology.
