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Newsday reports that Nassau County police arrested Stephen Buttafuoco, 23, who "interrupted the celebration's final prayers with recorded Arabic chants of 'God is great'" last week. That chant "spark[ed] fear among the 700 guests of a terrorist attack." Buttafuoco, a waiter for the wedding's catering company at the Woodbury Jewish Center (natch, he was fired), recorded the chants—"Allahu Akbar"— from the January 3 pro-Palestine rally in NYC and then played them over the PA system. He was charged with aggravated harassment; a grand jury will decide whether to charge him with disruption of a religious service. His lawyer, who suggested his client might be rebelling against his pro-Israel church preacher father, told Newsday the charges were harsh but added, "On the other hand, I can understand the concern of the members of Jewish community who were at this wedding." We'll wait for the newlyweds and/or Woodbury Jewish Center suing the catering company.
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"Buttafuoco"???
I wonder: Any relation to Joey Buttafuoco??
Seems just as smart...
Dopey
What a schmuck.
The Newsday story notes that there is no relation between this idiot and the Joey who shares the same last name.
Just disrespectful, regardless of the religions involved. He selfishlessly ruined what was probably a once-in-a-lifetime event for two families. I don't know the laws regarding disrupting a religious ceremony, but it seems like it should be a civil matter.
No link to the Newsday article in the above, so here it is:
http://www.newsday.com/news/local/ny-liwait0110,0,6672985.story
And no, no relation to Joey according to the article, though he's gone through being asked that his whole life.
I added the link—thanks.
And I agree with brooklynbs—just depressing to have someone interrupt your wedding, no mater what religion you are.
Fact is that islam teaches nothing but utter contempt for any other religion while demanding deference if not outright submission from everyone else.
Can you imagine the uproar if a muslim wedding had been interrupted by a Jew reciting the Torah?
"Fact is that islam teaches nothing but utter contempt for any other religion while demanding deference if not outright submission from everyone else."
Irrelevant even if true, since this guy is a Christian, raised by a born-again minister.
"Can you imagine the uproar if a muslim wedding had been interrupted by a Jew reciting the Torah?"
I can't imagine that the reaction would be any worse than in this case: the person being charged with a felony.
Thank you for being so diplomatic, as opposed to the person you replied to.
Thank you Herr Goebbels.
dooWop, please don't concern yourself about our sense of humor. We are a lot funnier than you. Silly pranks belong in a school yard and not during a wedding party.
@LaLuneEstMorte,
I think what ides of march is trying to say is that if a Jew interrupted a Muslim wedding with disruptive messages about how wonderful his/her god is, we should all be surprised if the wedding guests don't retaliate by burning down an embassy.
We Jews are certainly a zany and often over-sensitive bunch, but thankfully we tend not to shit our pants every time someone makes a cartoon we don't like.
As a side note, I was at a wedding at that same place 2 months ago, and as brooklynbs and Jen Chung have alluded to, no one deserves to deal with this crap during such a special occasion. Stupid things like a missing button and the rabbi getting stuck in traffic are supposed to be all that doesn't go as planned.
Right, but you need to realize that not all Muslims are radicals. Every religion has their fanatics, and even though it's shown to be more prevalent in Islam, it doesn't give people the right to generalize--wrongly at that.
The usual verbal diarrhea from DooWOP.
"don't retaliate by burning down an embassy"
Did Arabs burn down an embassy after a wedding got ruined? I think they reserve the embassy burning to protest against being driven from their homes and forced to live in apartheid within a wall...
That being said, I am far from defending some stupid kid for ruining a wedding. I just don’t think it’s very relative to speculate about "what if" this had happened to Arabs, which had absolutely nothing to do with this.
Meh.
It's better than peeing in the soup.
"might be rebelling against his pro-Israel church preacher father"
Really, isn't 23 a little old to be rebelling against your parents?
Time to get a real job, your own place, and stop caring what dad believes.
While this person's action exudes douchebaggery, making it into a criminal matter seems a bit extreme. Those affected by the chants should simply sue the catering company for hiring such an ass (what would be fair is to have the catering and everything be free, but I'm sure the lawsuit will contain some bogus multi-million dollar claim).
Unfortunately, you cannot legislate stupidity, so while this action is moronic and inappropriate, it's hardly criminal.
true, kid stood up for his belief in a stupid matter and perhaps his dad religious zealous drove his behavior but it is hardly criminal. He pose no danger to anyone.
You can't yell "fire" in a crowded theater. You can't yell "bomb" on a plane. You can't play back a chant known to be associated with suicide bombings at a Jewish wedding. Any 23-year-old should know that.
And if caterers do anything to prevent this from happening again--like asking employees about their religious preferences, feelings, etc.--they'll be sued up the bunghole for discrimination. Meanwhile this kid will get a stern talking to from a judge and maybe some community service while this young couple have a ruined wedding to look back on. I hope everyone at that wedding writes a fat check to their local Zionist organization.
I stumbled onto the pro-Palestinian parade last week along 42nd Street near Grand Central. While watching I was startled to see four Hasidic Jews, hands clasped to one another, marching along with the rest of the protesters. Speaking later with one of my work colleagues, he told me there are some Jews opposed to zionism, and the state of Israel.
I found this link: Jews Against Zionism: The Hidden Protest
http://folsomtelegraph.com/detail/102568.html
The Hasidim are just pissed that they can't open a camera store in Gaza.
I'm not sure if it's just Hasidim that feel this way.
Probably the Neturei Karta. They think the Holocaust was punishment for the golden calf incident at Sinai. :-P
I rebelled against my preacher father by becoming atheist at age 13 and staying that way forever. God ruins lives.
what do you mean "natch"?
Just that naturally a catering employee actively disrupting (and freaking out) a wedding would be fired (like if he had pulled the fire alarm).
Did this person really not know what Jen meant by "natch?"
And how would we say "douche" in Hebrew?
If you were on a plane at 30,000 feet and some guy started chanting allahu akbar, I don't care how liberal, tolerant or progressive you consider yourself, you'd get seriously spooked.
Why would people be afraid of hearing Allah Akbar? Remember, Islam is a religion of peace.
Because sometimes people begin yelling that phrase right before they start throwing rocks.
Rocks? Not quite. :-) Unless those rocks are attached to explosives, which are attached to the person screaming it out.
It's sad how a small group of people have completely tainted the view of one of the many bullshit religions of the world. Catholics have pedophiles, Muslims have terrorists. Atheists like me think it's all crap.
Atheists had - just to name a couple - Stalin and Hitler, who killed tens of millions. Atheists' shit smells just like everyone else's, despite your stereotyping billions of humanity in one sentence.
Don't forget Lenin, Mao and Napoleon.
Hitler was an atheist? That's news to me. His entire death cult was steeped in religion. As for Stalin -- replacing one religion or doctrine with another one headed by a guy with a long beard is just the same thing with a different name.
Horribly disrespectful and low. However, I had to laugh. Comedy is always about watching somebody else suffer as in Candid Camera or America's Funniest Home Videos (banana peels, hits to the crotch, etc).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Er-rsicYJg&NR=1
Even South Koreans dont support Israel, only USA supports Israel
yeah, that really hurts.
A large formal catered wedding cost tens of thousands of dollars and often over a year to prepare. If he messed it up with a prepared recording, isn't the same as bringing a gallon of gas, matches and a crowbar to burn someone's new car?
Um, No...
Outright Destruction Vs. creating an atmosphere of Panic is quite two different things.
In any case, If they aren't I think the family should sue him too.
Maybe...
I'm not saying it's the same exact thing, but he showed malicious intent by preparing a stunt to screw up an expensive formal event just because he felt like it and had the access.
Isn't creating an Atmosphere of Panic (good name for a band, by the way)an outright destruction of a very expensive event?
If someone creates an atmosphere of panic, they could be charged with reckless endangerment as well. That stupid stunt could have started a stampede where people could have been trampled to death.
Can someone explain me why the catering company is liable? It's not like they do it on all their events... it's just a stupid moron that happened to be working with them. You cannot do anything about morons until they f*ck up, right?
How does a waiter get his hands on the PA system?
This idiotic brat will likely never attend a wedding again.
Is everyone too stupid to realize that Allahu Akbar means "God is Great", not "Kill the Jews"? If everyone wasn't so damn paranoid, this would be a funny-haha story, not a criminal act (which will certainly be dismissed).
I dunno ... when some people have been known to chant "Allahu Akbar" right before they blow themselves up in a crowded place ... preferably full of Jews. Yeah, I guess that's real funny ha ha.
I mean, it is like why would anyone get all bent out of shape about something as innocuous as "ARBEIT MACHT FREI". It just means, works sets you free, right? Right? Dumbass.
Yikes, down the street from my High School.
the religion of peace at it again! Those goofballs
What religion, Billiamsburg? Last I checked neither Stephen nor Buttafuco was an islamic name. Dumbass, yes. Muslim? not so much.
Meantime, the catering company is completely liable. If I trip and pour wine all over your fluffy white dress, the people I work for have to pick up the dry cleaning tab and it is between me and them how they want to take it from there. The reason you hire a catering company instead of interviewing the waiters yourself is so that you don't end up with a bunch of jackasses.