That's cool but if I'm not mistaken this is a cell phone video taken by a civilian miles away who just saw a massive explosion and yelled "oh my god!"

Not quite "Oh my god!", it's still "God is Greater".

Greater than what, you might ask? YOUR GOD, OBVIOUSLY!

So is "allahu akbar" the semantic equivalent of saying "Jesus Christ" in arabic? Like, if someone who speaks arabic puts their hand on the casserole dish before it cooled down, burning themselves, would they scream, "allahu akbar"?

It's more like saying "God (Allah) is great". So, it's suitable for when someone does something you think Allah would see favorably, or when something fortuitous happens. It serves as a "thank you", a rallying cry, and a statement of cause for one's actions.

Breaking news: cultural exclamations and idioms don't translate literally.

It's also used as a plea for deliverance or a statement of amazement at adversity (i.e. bombs blowing up your city, your house being shelled, etc.).

Even atheists say "Thank God" and "Jesus." and shit like that. This is an expression that is even more a gut reaction in Arabic culture than those.

The expression "allahuh akbar" is called Takbir in Arabic. It IS the same as saying "Jesus Christ!" in times of distress. These people could be reveling in the explosion, but it is likely that they are frightened, impressed or shocked by it. Odds are it's the latter, since most Muslims deplore participating in violence like any other religious or non-religious person.

This has been brought to you by Google.

Oooh!

"Some say the takbir has even made its way off the planet. A widely circulated urban legend holds that a befuddled Neil Armstrong heard the words Allahu akbar and the call to prayer when he stepped onto the surface of the moon. He converted to Islam, the story goes, when he returned to Earth and discovered the source of the phrase. The myth of Armstrong's conversion was so pervasive in the Muslim world that the U.S. State Department even issued a denial on the astronaut's behalf."

This is a video from Syria with a bunch of dead children. If, after watching it, you still think that "Allahu Akhbar" is used to express approval, you are a moron: http://youtu.be/cO8_eZcZkNE

Allahu Akhbar = Holy Fucking Shit

It looked like a freeze frame.

best part.

Hands down, the questioner. It's the O shape that his mouth forms. He just can't believe he is being owned by Abe Simpson. And he is.

Brian Kilmeade and Steve Douchey are equally excellent at looking stupid on TV.

To be fair, I don't think he was stating that as a negative. It seems more like poor phrasing than poor intent. It would have been better stated as something along the lines of "These are likely to be moderate Muslims expressing their excitement in a culturally appropriate way - much like we might say 'thank god'. It's entirely inappropriate to assume anything negative about them just because they expressed some satisfaction at seeing their enemy being dealt a blow."

It's very frustrating to me, given our country's longstanding tradition of racism towards nations of our political enemies. We go to war with Japan, and suddenly all asians in cartoons are buck-toothed rice-hatted squinty-eyed sneaky people who speak poor English and bow a lot. We go to war in the middle east, and the internet is aflush with genuine race hate so vile that it's legitimately disgusting - from Sept. 11 2001 to today.

And, yet, some people in a foreign country with a different religion celebrate successful attacks against their enemy using a phrase that can be used in many different situations and has no inherent malice, and suddenly everyone of that race and religion are terrible and bloodthirsty people.

Fuck everyone.

It's almost like how certain religions will claim they're being discriminated against when they're told the law won't allow them to discriminate against those they hate.

At least we can all agree americans are terrible.

Gotta start somewhere.