They Come In Three's

At work, there is someone who stubbornly responds the same way whenever there is an item in the news about the death of a famous person--she predicts that 2 more will die, because "they come in threes." Generally, it seems she is right, though I wonder why she applies this magical rule only to the US.

For no reason in particular, I thought of this now that it appears that there are going to be 3 Muslims taking on important positions in 2 Democratic non-Muslim, non-Arab countries:

• Keith Ellison is the first Muslim elected to Congress
• Zalmay Khalilzad is the first Muslim appointed to be the US Ambassador to the UN
• Raleb Majadele will be the first Muslim Arab Minister in the Israeli government

Majadele's appointment by Peretz is being viewed cynically by both Israelis and Arabs as a pure political move to improve Peretz's chances in the next Labor elections.

Khalilzad's appointment by Bush has been view positively by Jewish groups and as a sign that US support for Israel will continue and may possibly improve communication with member states in the UN. Some on the left though are suspicious, having seen him as another neo-con and having noted his background in the oil industry.

Ellison, being elected and not appointed is free from such cynicism--though his being named to the House Judiciary Committee, where the chairman has a bill singling out Muslims as targets of discrimination, has been noted.

On the other hand, being appointed, Majadele and Khalilzad have not had their motives questioned--not even Majadale: no one has claimed that he will represent Islamist interests or undermine the government. At least not yet they haven't.

Having run a political campaign, and having created political alliances and received favors, Ellison is another story. There are questions about his connection with CAIR. Questions have been raised by blogs about his membership in the Nation of Islam. There are questions about other associations as well.

While Majadele's position may turn out to me just window dressing, Khalilzad and Ellison have positions of real power and influence--and both will generate great expectations among some, and cynicism among others.

And it's only January.

Technorati Tag: Keith Ellison and Zalmay Khalilzad and Raleb Majadele.