Outrageous: NY Times Op-Ed Defends Sharia Law … in America

.... Of course, what Stern was serving up here was the familiar (and absurd) conceit that in the Western world today, Muslims are what Jews used to be — the supreme victims of unjust prejudice from all quarters.

No, Muslims are not the Jews of today; on the contrary, in both Europe and North America, everybody from writers, journalists, and professors to politicians, judges, and police officials tend to tiptoe around explosive truths about Islam in order to avoid offending adherents of the faith — a courtesy that these same parties extend to no one else, certainly not Jews. [Pajamas Media] Read more

Spanish town bans burka

A small town on the Spanish resort island of Mallorca has banned women from wearing burkas or face-covering Islamic veils in public places, even though only two women living there are known to do so.

Mayor Biel Serra of the town of Sa Pobla said last night's vote was not about cultural or religious discrimination but rather an issue of public safety and having people show their faces so they can be identified. [independent.co.uk] Read more

Three Men Hanged For Having Gay Sex In Iran

Three men were executed by hanging in Iran for "forbidden acts against religion," according to AFP.

Iran Human Rights explains that the state-run Iranian news agency ISNA reported that the men were put to death for acts against sharia, "based on the articles 108 and 110 of the Iranian Islamic penal code."

Articles 108 and 110 of the penal code are part of the chapter covering the punishment of sodomy, according to Iran Human Rights. [The Huffington Post] Read more

GAGGING US SOFTLY

.... after Anders Breivik gunned down dozens of his fellow Norwegians, just about the only angle on the story that got the Western Left’s juices going was the opportunity it afforded to narrow the parameters of public discourse even more.

They gleefully fell on his 1,500-page “manifesto,” wherein he cites me, John Derbyshire, Bernard Lewis, Theodore Dalrymple, and various other names familiar round these parts.

He also cites Winston Churchill, Thomas Jefferson, Mahatma Gandhi, Mark Twain, Hans Christian Andersen, and my leftie com­patriot Naomi Klein, the “No Logo” gal and a columnist for The Nation in the U.S. and the Guardian in Britain. Just for the record, my name appears four times, Miss Klein’s appears four times. [SteynOnline] Read more

Court allows Dutch school to ban headscarves

An Amsterdam court has ruled that the Roman Catholic Don Bosco College in Volendam is within its rights to ban one of its students from wearing a headscarf.

Imane Mahssan took the school to court after it ordered her to stop wearing a headscarf. The court sided with the school.

It ruled that Catholic institutions can generally make their own decisions in matters of religion, as long as they are consistent. The Muslim student knew beforehand that Don Bosco College was a Catholic school and should have realised that wearing a headscarf would cause problems. [Radio Netherlands Worldwide] Read more

Schools face tricky calls on religion

Once, maybe twice a year a parent will ask principal Nickolas Stefanoff to excuse his child from band class because he believes instrumental music contravenes the teachings of Islam.

That’s not often for a school of 1,200, but when it happens it poses a dilemma for the head of Toronto’s Valley Park Middle School: The Ontario government says children must learn music, but it also says schools must honour a student’s religion when it bumps up against public education.

So Stefanoff strikes the kind of compromise that is becoming more common — and controversial — as schools grow more diverse. [Toronto Star] Read more [via National Secular Society]

Hitch in plans for two Muslim schools as preferred sites deemed to be too small

.... A Department for Education spokesman said no final decision had been made on An-Noor's application and said he could not discuss the specific proposals further.

But he added: "A strong application would not be ruled out solely on the basis of concerns about potential sites."

Mr Rehmat previously said the schools would teach the National Curriculum "in a religious atmosphere". He stressed non-Muslim teenagers would be able to attend the school and would not have to pray.

The Government will not consult with Derby City Council until it has made an initial decision on An-Noor's application. [This is Derbyshire] Read more

The recipe for successful multiculturalism – inequality, subservience & duplicity!

.... As with so many Islamic scholars living in the West Iman Rauf says contradictory things. They are torn between what they believe westerners might tolerate and what they know their religion requires.

Imam Rauf clearly says “…the only truly clashing area is the penal code, and no Muslim has the intention of introducing that to America”.

Yet in his book Islam: A Sacred Law: What Every Muslim Should Know About the Shariah on p58 he writes "And since a Shari'ah is understood as a law with God at its center, it is not possible in principle to limit the Shari'ah to some aspects of human life and leave out others." [LibertyPhile – This is Why] Read more

The trouble with multiculturalism

.... it’s not just Muslims that need to confront the dark elements of their faith, says Raza. Non-Muslim Canadians, too, must recognize their liberal democratic traditions are threatened, and government-sanctioned multicultural policies make it worse.

“When I first landed in Canada and heard the word ‘multiculturalism’ I thought this country was telling me I could enjoy my culture, but at the same time it was my responsibility to adapt and blend into this new culture. It took me a while to realize that official multiculturalism, as promoted by the Canadian government, allowed people to ghettoize themselves. So, I was a multiculti fan until I realized it was doing more harm than good.”

.... “Some of the practices allowed in the name of multiculturalism are fundamentally in contravention of western values,” says Muslim activist and scholar Farzana Hassan, the author of two books calling for Islam’s reformation, Prophecy and the Fundamentalist Quest of Islam, and Islam, Women and the Challenge of Today. “We have this abusive multiculturalism now, and it has become the West’s Achilles heel.” [The Ottawa Citizen] Read more [via International Free Press Society]

Bloggers on Tower Hamlets and the EDL

Sixteen arrests were initially made following the EDL’s demonstration in London and the counter-protest by its opponents. Later 44 further arrests followed an incident in which a coach stopped in Whitechapel Road, and was attacked by local youths. According to this report everyone on the bus was arrested. The full picture isn’t clear, but this post tries to piece together all the available information. [Harry’s Place] Read more

How Sharia Undermines Western Justice

.... application of the Sharia has obviously negative societal repercussions, for both Muslims and non-Muslims. How this undeniable truth somehow escapes the mental and moral calculus of Western Sharia-apologists such as Yale’s Eliyahu Stern is astonishing, and reveals the frightening, delusively self-righteous cultural relativist mindset of the American academy.

If Stern was truly desirous of protecting the unique Western freedoms many Muslim immigrants to the US cherish in common with non-Muslim Americans, he would applaud the Tennessee state legislature’s bill SB 1028, instead of condemning it. [Right Side News] Read more [via National Secular Society]

John Esposito; The Consequences of Islamophobia, in the U.S. and Abroad

.... Because the small number of extremists responsible for 9/11 and terrorist attacks in Europe and the Muslim world legitimated their acts in the name of Islam, we have seen an exponential increase in the past ten years of hostility and intolerance towards fellow Muslim citizens.

This hatred threatens the democratic fabric of American and European societies and impacts not only the safety and civil liberties of Muslims but also, as the attacks in Norway demonstrate, the safety of all citizens. [CPOST] Read more [via Islamophobia Watch]

Wilders addresses far-right German party

.... Mr Wilders attacked the European Union and Islam, which he described as the two biggest threats. He stressed, however, that “Breivik is not one of us”.

He was referring to the Norwegian far-right extremist Anders Behring Breivik who invoked Mr Wilders as an inspiring example after killing 77 people in twin attacks in and near the capital Oslo in July. “We reject violence, we are democrats, we believe in peacefulness, we reject Islam for its violent character,” Mr Wilders said.

The meeting was attended by 600 people, far fewer than expected. Police had cordoned off the area around the hotel where it was held. Several hundred demonstrators protested against the meeting. [Radio Netherlands Worldwide] Read more

Indonesia's SCTV blasted for pulling religion film

The Indonesian Broadcasting Commission criticised a major television station for giving into Islamists' demands that a film on religious tolerance be pulled.

The Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) had threatened to storm SCTV headquarters if it broadcast a movie titled "?", scheduled for the last night of the Ramadan holy fasting month this week.

"We regret SCTV's decision to not air the movie. The movie has passed the censorship requirements and it doesn't violate any regulations," broadcasting commission official Ezki Suyanto told AFP on Friday.

"It seems the station is just afraid of the FPI. SCTV should not have given in to them. This is a bad precedent for other groups to do the same to TV stations." [AFP] Read more

On That Non-existent Threat From Islam

.... Some -- many -- Muslims mislead non-Muslims about what Islam inculcates for the obvious reason. If they dare to recognize what is in the Qur'an and Hadith, the next question for them is obviously: How is it that you continue to call yourself a Muslim, allow yourself to identify with Islam.

There are many reasons why, but not one of them can be admitted to. Some feel the tug of filial piety, familial loyalty, and don't want to disappoint or be cut off from disapproving relatives.

Others, seeing all the bad things - and there are so many bad things -- about the West, become resentful, even furious, that non-Muslim Westerners dare to criticize them, and their Islam. Still others are too embarrassed to admit that they would live in fear if they publicly distanced themselves from Islam. [The Iconoclast] Read more

Geert Wilders On Islam, Europe, And The Nation-State

.... Last July, the Dutch government even did something which not a single nation has dared to do before. It spoke out firmly against the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.

The OIC is an international organization of 57 Islamic countries, most of them barbaric tyrannies. This OIC constitutes the largest voting bloc in the United Nation. It had criticised the fact that Dutch judges had acquitted me of all charges of group insult and incitement to hatred and discrimination.

But the Dutch government made it clear to the OIC that freedom of speech will not be muzzled in the Netherlands. It told the OIC very bluntly: "The Dutch government dissociates itself fully from the request to silence a politician." [The Iconoclast] Read more

Muslims criticise Scotland Yard for telling them to engage with EDL

Scotland Yard has been accused of underestimating the threat from the English Defence League (EDL) after the head of the unit monitoring hate groups declared it was not an extremist organisation.

In an email obtained by the Guardian, Adrian Tudway, National Co-ordinator for Domestic Extremism, said he formed the view the EDL were not extreme after reading their website.

Today the EDL, accused by Muslims of fostering hate against them, will stage a "static" demonstration in Tower Hamlets, east London, in one of their most potentially provocative displays so far. [guardian.co.uk] Read more

Muslim group's official: Police failed to show restraint in Playland headwear melee

Tuesday's melee at Playland Amusement Park could have been avoided had police shown more restraint in dealing with angry park-goers, a leader of The Muslim American Society of New York said Thursday.

In an interview, Sharif Aly, the group's vice president, said police overreacted when a melee broke out among 30 to 40 people upset about the enforcement of a longstanding restriction on headwear on some rides.

Aly deflected criticisms that the leaders of his group had dropped the ball by not notifying people about the park's policy beforehand.

"We can't be expected to notify everyone of every single policy," Aly said. "There could have been better communication on all ends." [LoHud.com] Read more

Islamic fury erupts over an Indonesian movie, and a colouring book in the US

A MOVIE made to foster religious tolerance was due to be shown by SCTV in Indonesia this week – but was pulled at the last moment following threats by Muslim zealots against the TV station.

Broadcasting commission official Ezki Suyanto said: We regret SCTV’s decision to not air the movie. The movie has passed the censorship requirements and it doesn’t violate any regulations. It seems the station is just afraid of the FPI. SCTV should not have given in to them. This is a bad precedent for other groups to do the same to TV stations.

FPI secretary-general Sobri Lubis said the movie tried to incite hatred toward Islam and disgraced the religion by suggesting Muslims could live together harmoniously with people of other faiths in one country. [The Freethinker] Read more

Which "Defamation of Religion" Does the UN Human Rights Commission Dislike?

.... In the West, unlike in Muslim countries, religious criticism is part of our dialogue; critics are not murdered. But the Muslim prohibition against defamation of religion applies only to defaming Islam, not defaming Judaism or Christianity, which are fair game.

This is folly. None of the western critics of Islam have urged violence. They are not putting “fatwas” on people's heads, not offering prizes for murdering someone for a cartoon that “insults” the Prophet Mohammad, nor advocating depriving such people of protection of law. [FamilySecurityMatters.org] Read more

Banning halal slaughter the right thing to do

.... “This is a major step forward for animal welfare and we urge all of the 26 other European Union member states to follow the example of the Dutch government,” he said in a statement. “It will be possible for religious groups to get an exemption, but only when they provide indisputable proof that their alternative method will not cause more harm to animal welfare than pre-slaughter stunning.”

Scientists have long debated “halal” and “kosher” slaughter and recent evidence suggests that the “draining of blood from an animal from its neck causes unnecessary suffering and prolongs the death process,” as a European Union study reported in 2008. [Bikya Masr] Read more

Meet the Islamophobes

Eli Clifton, co-author of the Center for American Progress report Fear, Inc. The Roots of the Islamophobia Network in America, is publishing a series of articles at Think Progress based on the report's findings.

So far, the series has covered Richard Scaife, the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation and Steven Emerson. [Islamophobia Watch] Read more

Spanish Town Becoming "New Mecca of the Most Radical Islamism"

The municipality of Salt, a town near Barcelona where Muslim immigrants now make up 40% of the population, has approved a one-year ban on the construction of new mosques. It is the first ban of its kind in Spain.

The moratorium follows public outrage over plans to build a massive Salafi mosque that is being financed by Saudi Arabia. Salafism is a branch of revivalist Islam that calls for restoring past Muslim glory by forcibly re-establishing an Islamic empire (Caliphate) across the Middle East, North Africa and parts of Europe such as Spain, which Salafists view as a Muslim state that must be reconquered for Islam.

Much of Spain was ruled by Muslim conquerors from 711 and 1492; Salafists believe that the territories the Muslims lost during the Spanish Reconquista still belong to them, and that they have a right to return and establish their rule there – a belief based on the Islamic precept that territories once occupied by Muslims must forever remain under Muslim domination. [Hudson New York] Read more

Norway: "You can't oppose capital punishment and be Muslim"

.... In a discussion forum on Islamnet.no, Qureshi writes: "a person who says that he's principally opposed to capital punishment, is opposing principles prescribed by Allah (...)

A person who think that he knows better than Allah about what is best for people isn't Muslims because the definition of a Muslim is one who submits to Allah. (...) This is something Muslims have agreed upon forever. This is so simple (...) that there is no doubt about it."

This was written in a discussion on whether the laws of Allah are absolute and whether it's possible to interpret them based on today's reality. Qureshi was answering somebody who wrote that he principally opposed the death sentence and wished to reform Islam so that it upheld human rights.

This person was asked by several other participants whether he was an infidel. [Islam in Europe] Read more

Keeping quiet allows intolerance to thrive

.... Namazie says it's worse than mere cowardice. The thinking classes' timid silence on Islamism cedes the critical ground to the far right, allowing Islamists to cry Islamophobia and render themselves immune.

.... Atheist Foundation members, invited to debate the existence of God with the Muslim Students Association, found the room segregated, men left, women right.

Ian Bryce, from the Secular Party of Australia, recalls also a ''couples'' space in the centre, and jests that a gay couple from their number should have sat there. It would have been a brave move.

An ex-Muslim, Hossain Salahuddin, remembers the audience as "very hostile . . . pretty nasty". A heckler shouting, "Islam will conquer the world", was cheered and a couple of the looser canons were ejected. The atheists were later escorted by security not just from the room but also from the campus.

This is Australia; an Australian university, for godsake, where Bryce - famous for his 2008 fake popemobile - once taught aerospace engineering. Yet we say nothing. Our desperation to avoid intolerance allows intolerance to thrive. Our determination not to offend means we tolerate the thoroughly offensive. [The Sydney Morning Herald] Read more