‘Moderate’ Muslim Claims Islam Is Peaceful, Bill Maher Gives Brutal RESPONSE!
The “Gay in Gaza” Lie and the Infinite Tolerance for Intolerance
The recent shouting match on Real Time with Bill Maher provided a masterclass in the exact kind of gaslighting that has allowed radical ideologies to fester within Western discourse. When a guest looked Bill Maher in the eye and claimed that one could be “openly gay in Gaza” and live “absolutely,” we moved past a mere difference of opinion and entered the realm of the absurd. This isn’t just a “view” or a “perspective”; it is a dangerous, provable lie intended to shield a brutal theocratic reality from the scrutiny of Western liberals.
The guest’s insistence that Maher is a “bigot” for pointing out the illiberalism of Islamic law is the standard shield used by the activist class. They demand “nuance” and “distinctions” between Sufis, Sunnis, and Shias, yet they flatly ignore the fact that in the territories they are defending, the “nuance” for a gay man is whether he is executed by hanging or by being thrown off a building.
Fact-Checking the “Gaza Tolerance” Myth
To claim that someone can be openly gay in Gaza is an insult to the memory of the people who have actually lived—and died—there. Under the rule of Hamas, the legal and social reality for the LGBTQ+ community is one of state-sanctioned terror.
The Penal Code: Gaza remains under a 1936 British Mandate legal code that criminalizes “unnatural offenses,” but Hamas has “enhanced” this with extrajudicial brutality.
The Mahmoud Ishtiwi Case: In 2016, Hamas executed one of its own top commanders, Mahmoud Ishtiwi, following accusations of “moral turpitude”—a euphemism for gay sex. He was tortured and shot.
The West Bank Reality: Even in the supposedly more “moderate” West Bank, the PA police banned the LGBTQ+ group al-Qaws from holding events in 2019, citing that their activities were “contrary to the values of Palestinian society.”
The guest’s claim that you could “walk inside a door in Gaza and say ‘I’m a Presbyterian today'” is equally delusional. While there is a tiny, dwindling Christian minority in Gaza, proselytizing or leaving Islam (apostasy) is a death sentence in the hearts and minds of the ruling radicals. To suggest otherwise is to perform PR for a terrorist organization.
The “Bigotry” Smokescreen and False Equivalency
The most telling part of the exchange was the guest’s attempt to compare Maher’s criticisms of Islam to racism against African-Americans or anti-Semitism. Maher’s response was a rare moment of televised clarity: African-Americans and Jews do not belong to a religion that issued a fatwa to kill a man for writing a book.
When the “secular Muslim” guest argues that generalizing “perpetuates bigotry,” he is conflating a critique of an ideology with a critique of a race. Islam is a set of ideas, and in its Islamist form, it is an extremely illiberal set of ideas.
Apostasy: According to a 2013 Pew Research study, 86% of Muslims in Egypt and 82% in Jordan support the death penalty for those who leave Islam.
The Rushdie Precedent: The attempted murder of Salman Rushdie in 2022 was the direct result of a decades-old religious decree. No other major religion in the 21st century maintains a global, active hit list for authors.
Issue
Western Liberal Value
Islamist Theocratic Reality (Majorities in many regions)
Free Speech
Protected even if offensive
Punishable by death (Blasphemy laws)
LGBTQ+ Rights
Equality and Marriage
Criminalization or Execution
Religious Freedom
Right to convert or be atheist
Death for Apostasy
Women’s Rights
Full autonomy
Legal guardianship and “modesty” policing
The Fifth Column of Silence
The guest accused Maher of treating Muslims like a “fifth column,” yet the irony is that by refusing to acknowledge the radicalism within the faith, these “secular” apologists are the ones doing the work of al-Qaeda. As Maher pointed out, he doesn’t want a “war on Islam”; he wants to win the “war on terror.” But you cannot win a war against an enemy you are forbidden to name.
By shutting down every conversation with the “bigot” label, the Left has created a vacuum where only the most radical voices are heard. The “organized minority” controls the narrative because the “disorganized majority” is terrified of being called offensive. But in a free society, it is okay to be offensive. If your religion requires the death of authors and the execution of gay people, being “offended” by someone pointing that out is the least of your problems.
The American system is built on the idea that you can give a speech and not everyone has to agree. But the modern “progressive” movement has moved toward a model of “enforced agreement.” They don’t want a debate; they want a monologue of submission. And as long as they keep lying about the reality of life in places like Gaza, they will continue to be the “useful idiots” for the very people who would silence them permanently.
