Nuclear Security Summit Logo Is Proof of What? - updated 6/24/11

Sheila Musaji

Posted Jun 24, 2011      •Permalink      • Printer-Friendly Version
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Nuclear Security Summit Logo Is Proof of What?

by Sheila Musaji


This week there was a lot of discussion about the Nuclear Security Summit (NSS) logo which has the Bohr model of the atom around the outside of a circular logo on a blue background.  This was seen by those looking for Muslims under the bed as not an atom, but something sinister, a crescent moon.  Pamela Geller was on this right away.

These Muslim conspiracy theorists find Islamic symbolism everywhere.  Remember the uproar over the Flight 93 memorial by Michelle Malkin, Pamela Geller and many others of this same Islamophobic crowd? 

Or Frank Gaffney’s theory that the U.S. Missile Defense Agency Logo is evidence of Obama’s ‘Submission To Shariah’.  Pamela Geller called this logo cultural jihad

Or, Frank Kovach’s claim on Renew America that earthquakes in California appear in the shape of an Islamic crescent as a sign from God But, this crescent is oriented exactly upside-down and backwards of the Islamic crescent. In religious iconography, that would be the equivalent of a public slap in the face. Only an all-powerful God could have arranged earthquakes to appear on a map in the shape of an upside-down-and-backwards Islamic crescent.

Michael Goodwin in an article in the New York Post wrote

“The first time I saw the swirling logo for the Nuclear Security Summit, it looked familiar. I soon figured out what it reminded me of: a crescent moon.

The kind of crescent moon you see on the flags of Muslim countries (from left: Turkey, Algeria, Tunisia and Pakistan).

Indeed, the crescent, often with a single or multiple stars, is the main symbol of Islam. So now there is something like it at an official presidential event, prominently displayed in photographs being beamed around the world.”

This is pretty typical of the conspiracy theory crowd.  You can see a clip of Fox News take on this “conspiracy” here.  And, for a stark raving mad take on this logo and many others (including the Missile Defense Agency) see this article on the Error Theory blog.

Jon Stewart debunked this brilliantly.

And, Christopher Knight noted in the L.A. Times

“Really? And here I thought the graphic design of a bead traveling on a circular path actually represents the movement of subatomic particles—an electron revolving around a nucleus—and not an Islamic crescent.

That symbol for nuclear power, often overlaid on a world map as it is here, has been obvious at least since the days of President Eisenhower’s “Atoms for Peace” campaign of the 1950s. It’s even the motif used on a famous 3-cent U.S. postage stamp, issued at Eisenhower’s request following a nationwide design competition in 1955.

None of the conspiracy theorists have yet explained where, in their paranoid—and comically politicized—take on the Nuclear Security Summit design, the star in the Islamic world’s familiar star-and-crescent logo might have disappeared to. (Maybe it’s hiding behind Kenya on the world map?) But if they do, I’ll let you know.”

Knight’s article has good visuals of the logo and of the 3-cent stamp.

I am waiting for these Muslim conspiracy folks to notice the flag of South Carolina which does have a genuine crescent and a Palmetto proudly displayed on a blue background.  (Wonkette also wonders Is There a *Reason* Why Terrorist South Carolina Has a Muslim Flag?)  I am also waiting for someone to notice the Dreamworks logo with the little boy sitting on the crescent moon and fishing, or those little yellow crescents in Lucky Charms cereal.

Actually, I’m not the only one to have thought about Lucky Charms.  One satirical post noted about this leprechaun jihad that But how do we know this crescent is indeed a Muslim crescent and not simply a well-endowed moon? Well, the box gives us a clue. Take a look at the leprechaun. We’re supposed to believe he’s Irish, but as my analysis demonstrates, he’s an Islamochaun, a homicide-bomber from Islam’s evil leprechaun armies of jihad.  The author did some serious research:  But is simply being an Islam shade of green enough? No, it could just be a coincidence. That’s why I decided to take a look at how the General Mills headquarters building—General Mills produces Lucky Charms—physically lines up with Islam’s most holy city, Mecca.

Still waiting for one of these “serious” Islamophobes to bring up Lucky Charms.


UPDATE 7/8/2010

The topic of “Islamic” logos, has once again reared its ugly head.  This time it is the NASA logo, after Charles Bolden’s recent statement, and Jon Stewart has once again seen through the Islamophobia and bigotry involved in this as well as the current bias against the building of mosques in the U.S.  Watch a video of Stewart pointing out the anti-Muslim biases regarding NASA’s recent foray into diplomacy, as well as the controversy over the construction of new mosques across the country here.


UPDATE 11/28/2010

This past Veteran’s Day, the Google Veteran’s Day logo came under the special scrutiny of Islamophobes.  Because the letter e (the last letter in google) was partially obscured by the American Flag, these folks saw that terrifying (to them) image of an Islamic crescent.  As Jason Linkins noted  Good lord, dude, IT IS THE LETTER “E.” Many episodes of Sesame Street were sponsored by this letter.


UPDATE 6/24/2011

Just how crazy can people be.  Someone sent me an email with a link to this article on a Christian site called “Incredible Miracles”.  It’s incredible alright!  The author in a rambling screed about the crescent moon and its meaning, makes some incredible points:  ... Well… the crescent moon is the symbol of Satan.  ...  There are many companies that carry that crescent moon in their logo, sometimes less apparent in its presentation. Just as a Christian may add the cross or the fish to their logo or advertisements, companies which are devoted to Satan have also added their crescent moon. The difference is… although everyone knows the cross and fish symbolize Christianity, most people have no clue that the crescent moon symbolizes Satan.  ...  The crescent moon has long been a symbal for Islam. We see the crescent moon on top of all their places of worship. The crescent moon standing tall and proud. Speaking volumes of their devotion to Satan.

The author finds this Islamic/Satanic symbol in many places:  the Pope’s scepter, Coca Cola cans, the Nike logo, the Quizno’s Sub logo, the American Cancer Society relay for life logo, the Dreamworks logo, and the Serta logo.

What do the NSS, Missile Defense Agency, NASA, GOOGLE, Quizno’s, Dreamworks, and Serta logos have in common? Islamophobic lunatics!


Originally posted 6/2010

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