Local Boy Makes Big Time

The guy who seems to be al-Qaida's chief spokesman now, al-Zawahari, released a new vid today, but his only part in it was to give a brief introduction to the new kid in town.

Most of the 48-minute tape was a speech by Adam Yehiye Gadahn, a young guy from a little town in California, near where I'm living. He left the U.S. shortly after 9/11 and attended some kind of al-Qaida training camp in Pakistan.

The AP story says that this video featuring Gadahn suggests "al-Qaida has found in him someone who can communicate effectively with Americans." I would be more likely to say that's what al-Qaida thinks since the speech was just the usual fundamentalist boilerplate.

Gadahn talked about the "errors" in Christianity and Judaism. He also said the United States is losing the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and told U.S. soldiers they are fighting Bush's "crusades."

"You know that if you die as an unbeliever in battle against the Muslims you're going straight to Hell without passing 'Go,'" Gadahn said, making a neat board game reference that any American would understand. "You know you're considered by Bush and his bunch of warmongers as nothing more than expendable cannon fodder ... You know they couldn't care less about your safety and well-being."

"We send a special invitation (to convert to Islam) to all of you fighting Bush's crusader pipe dream in Afghanistan, Iraq and wherever else 'W' has sent you to die. You know the war can't be won."

This is an interesting guy. From the sound of the story, he grew up poor; his old man was raising goats out there in scrub country. He didn't go to college, but went to L.A. and studied in some kind of Madrassa instead. His original name was Pearlman. Was this kid once Jewish?

What's striking, at least to me, is that al-Qaida seems to be more concerned lately with their public image and their propaganda effort than they are with staging attacks. Maybe soon they'll be buying their own t.v. commercial spots on "Survivor" and "Oprah" and "Softballs with Chris Matthews."

The A.P. story is here. There's also a video link available, on the same page, although I doubt too many of you are in the mood for a 45-minute al-Qaida sermon. I know I wasn't.