Post Film Violence Is Not The Answer

So what did an alleged director of the controversial film hope to accomplish?  Nakoula Basseley Nakoula supposedly directed the anti-Islamic movie that has stirred up violent protests across the world.  (But Nakoula's exact role in the production of the film has not been confirmed.  Rumours continue to circulate about the video's dissemination. Nakoula initially claimed to the AP that he was the film's writer and director. He subsequently denied that he was the director.)  Now the 55 year-old California native has abandoned his home in fear of his families safety. Nakoula apparently disguised his appearance when he left his home.  So just who is this man? 

Nakoula pleaded guilty in 1997 to possession with intent to manufacture methamphetamine.  He was sentenced to a year in jail,.  In 2010, Nakoula was charged with bank fraud.  Nakoula pleaded no contest in 2010 to federal bank fraud charges  and was ordered to pay more than $790,000 in restitution and was sentenced to 21 months in federal prison.  Prior to his bank fraud conviction, Nakoula struggled with financial problems.  In June 2006, a $191,000 tax lien was filed against him in the Los Angeles County Recorder of Deeds office. In 1997, a $106,000 lien was filed against him in Orange County.



So is it surprising that Nakoula might be a key figure behind "Innocence of Muslims?" The film unfairly denigrates Islam; however, that does not justify the violence against U.S. embassies in the Middle East and North Africa.  Why should the U.S. be targeted for the actions of a convict or even of a few loose cannons?  It simply doesn't make sense unless someone is looking for an excuse to pick a fight.  When it comes to zeoulous religious folks, experience suggests that common sense sometimes gets bypassed in favor of a strange sense of justice..