Michael Savage's Lawsuit Against Islamic Group Tossed By Judge

SAN FRANCISCO — A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by conservative radio talk show host Michael Savage against an Islamic civil rights group over its use of a portion of his show in which he called the Quran a "book of hate."

Savage sued the Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR, for copyright infringement and racketeering lawsuit late last year, claiming the group violated his rights by using a segment of his "Savage Nation" show in a letter-writing campaign to get advertisers to boycott the program. In the broadcast used by CAIR, Savage also called the Muslim holy book "a throwback document."

In her ruling Friday, U.S. District Judge Susan Illston said people who listen to a public broadcast are entitled to use excerpts for purposes of comment and criticism. She also said no evidence was presented to show that advertising on the show's broadcast was affected by CAIR's actions.

The racketeering element of the lawsuit alleged that CAIR was not a civil rights group, but a political organization with ties to terrorist groups. CAIR denies those claims, saying it opposes terrorism and religious extremism.

In an interview with The Associated Press after he filed the lawsuit in December, Savage said he was referring to Iran's president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his violent brand of Islamic extremism in the broadcast, not about the religion in general.

Savage's attorney, Daniel Horowitz, told the San Francisco Chronicle he plans to file a new racketeering suit.

Comments

[jemiltd]

The Quran, the Catholic Bible, the KJV, the Talmud, Mormon Bible, etc. all come from the same common root of original writings although most religions don't acknowledge that. It's always the manmade spins that make churches into religions.

[Querent]

Utter bullshit. While the Talmud might be classed as coming from the "common root of original writings", it presents itself as exegesis. The KJV and the "Catholic Bible" are versions of the same sources, although the Catholic cannon differs from the Protestant. These sources include the Torah, but not the Talmud. The Q'uran has little if anything in common with the bible except possibly a similar sensibility, and the Book of Mormon has elements of the Bible in it only because they were lifted and presented in a foreign context.

[soupson52]

Did you know Q, that we of the bible share Abraham with the Qoran? (Muslims spell his name Ibrahim, I believe.)

[soupson52]

Sorry. we of the Bible.

[DoctorABC]

The Old Testament is the Hebrew Bible/Torah which is only part of the Tanahk, the Jewish Holy Works; the Talmud is a series of very long and oft contradictory commentaries written in 200s and 500s.

The KJV is the Catholic Bible modified to suit the brand new Church of England, and most modern Protestant churches seem to be using the NIV these days.

The Quran uses much of the Christian and Jewish scriptures, and the Book of Mormon uses the Christian Bible and adds to it.

I'm a multiculturalist who can number people of all these faiths amongst my family and friends. I thought it would be a good idea to know a bit about their religions.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torah
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talmud
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/King_James_Bible
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quran
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_mormon

[LeftVetPatriot]

Bingo!

The Telephone Game at its most bizarre.

[geobushono]

LVP-
Best Post Of The Day.

[oncethere]

I repeat. Savage, Limbaugh, Hannity etc. have had the unfettered opportunity to preach right-wing ideology day in and day out for 15 to 20 years. Yet, they continue to whine about others trying to curtail their freedom of speech, through the Fairness Doctrine or whatever. How much is enough with these guys?

[Destin]

I need to correct you, where you say "to preach right-wing ideology", if you want to be honest you need to say it the way it really is..... "to preach right-wing hate speech".

[Scribe57]

There's a difference?

[Andman0121]

I can see it all now...
"This liberal judicial system constantly puts down us true patriots! I never called the Quran a throwback document at all! There is no proof out there at a-...(show­n the radio transcript of him saying it)...LIBE­RAL CONSPIRACY!"

conservative radio talk shows = hate

[indyleftist]

"no evidence was presented to show that advertising on the show's broadcast was affected by CAIR's actions."

This really says it all. Advertisers do not care what kind of racial hatred they finance

[buggedabouttheus]

Yes.

[wadenelson1]

Let's ask the obvious question. Has Michael Savage ever actually READ the Quran? Not just excerpts. You can find plenty in the Old Testament that make it look like a SERIOUS book of hate.

The key difference lies in how the Bible, well, at least the new Testament, tells us how we should treat our enemies. I'm not aware of ANY other scriptures that instruct us to "Love thy enemy."

This and the taking away of revenge is why Christianity .....is so different.

[daddydamon]

350 million Buddhists disagree. Remember, there are more than 3 religions in the world.

[FogBelter]

Exactly ... those religions which still remain that the other three were unable to destroy.

[BurtR]

"For hate is not conquered by hate: hate is conquered by love. This is a law eternal."
-Buddha in The Dhammapada Chapter 1, Verse 5
translation by Juan Mascaro

[BigFootJesus]

There is only about a dimes worth of difference between the major religions of the world. They all are being used to manipulate and control the people.

[JScott]

Next watch him (and his followers) rail against the judge and the judicial system, sounding like a whiny kid to me. Hmm candidate for 'Super Nanny' eh.

[MMF]

Coming soon: the suit against autistic kids whose families have been playing his hate-filled rant about them just needing a parent to tell them to "straighten up!" -- I bet he has a harder time finding a lawyer willing to take on that thankless job....

[JimboSlice]

You under-estimate what lawyers are capable of for a paycheck.

[CoulterIsASuccubus]

He has backpeddled from the original show where he said "95% of children diagnosed as autistic are just BRATS." He has spent a week spinning.