Los Angeles Times Slurs Geert Wilders Case as 'Hate Trial' — Hit Piece Cites 'Anti-Racist' Activists in Alleged Call to 'Dutch Tolerance'

It's the same thing, over and over.

The Los Angeles Times hard-copy has the headline: "Hate Trial Tests Dutch Tolerance." And at the web edition: "Netherlands Politician Has Angry Words for Muslims."

He calls Islam a "totalitarian ideology." He compares the Koran to "Mein Kampf" and wants it banned. He says that millions of Muslims who have settled in Europe ought to be deported, taking their "retarded" culture with them.

Such statements have made Geert Wilders the most controversial politician here in the Netherlands and a provocative figure abroad.

But do they also make him a criminal?

For months, Wilders, 47, has been at the center of a messy legal fight that has forced the parliament member to defend himself in an Amsterdam courtroom against charges of inciting hatred and insulting an entire class of people.

Wilders insists that he is being prosecuted — and persecuted — simply for speaking the truth about a dangerous religion and its adherents. His critics accuse him of whipping up public paranoia and jeopardizing the lives and livelihoods of the thousands of Muslims in the Netherlands.

The rancorous legal battle has thrown a spotlight on the growing tensions in societies where freedom of speech and freedom of religion seem to collide. Observers throughout Europe are closely watching the Wilders case at a time when vocal anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim sentiment is fueling the rise of right-wing parties and politicians.

The case also resonates in the U.S., which has been dogged by controversies such as the maverick pastor who threatened to publicly burn a copy of the Koran and the heated debate over the proposed building of an Islamic community center near the site of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in New York.

Notice the phony tie-in: Protesters in New York are the new Nazis, and the bloody freaking Westboro pastor in Florida is the poster-boy for alleged American racist hatred.

Typical for the left's DEMOCRAT-MEDIA-INDUSTRIAL-COMPLEX. You never get the full story. Not even close. Those who champion freedom and dignity for the individual are slurred as "haters." Those who truly hate, the Muslims calling for "Death to Jews," are glorified as alleged "victims of racist oppressors." It's all totally FUBAR. For example, at the Times' hit piece:

To his detractors, he is also a peddler of fear and hatred directed at the Muslims, who make up just 6% of the population but who Wilders constantly warns are undermining traditional Dutch society by following the dictates of a "fascist book."

"More and more people are starting to believe his paranoia," said Rene Danen, head of an anti-racist organization based in Amsterdam. "The fear is planted by Wilders, who says that the Muslims are taking over, that they're a fifth column."

Danen is one of the activists whose official complaint prompted Wilders' trial on charges of inciting hatred and insulting a class of people. These are criminal offenses in the Netherlands, though a conviction would probably result only in a relatively minor fine.

"For us, the main thing is that the judge draws a line," putting Wilders' conduct and speech outside the legal pale, Danen said.

This is pure bullshit, but what can you expect from the completely lame dead-tree press, not to mention the left's racism industry?

I'm still looking forward to meeting Geert Wilders. Once you listen to this man speak you know he has a heart of gold. He's truly one of the West's most vital champions of liberty and defense of democracy. Here's the speech from New York's SIOA rally:

RELATED: "Faith, Freedom, and Memory: Report From Ground Zero, September 11, 2010." And at Atlas Shrugs, "The Ground Zero Mosque War in the Information Battlespace."