Tag Archives: islam

The human right to be welcome

Posted on by

Swiss national Abdel Azziz Qaasim Illi (a.k.a . Abu Nusaybah, birth name Patric Jerome Illi), leading member of the ‘Islamischer Zentralrat Schweiz’ (IZRS) was barred from entering Canada where he wanted to attend the ‘Reviving the Islamic Spirit’ conference. Why wasn’t he allowed to travel to Toronto? Well, details are still sketchy, but it’s a safe bet that being a member of the fundamental islamic IZRS has something to do with it, along with the fact that some countries (USA, New Zealand) regard him as a hate preacher.

According to Swiss News, Illi was ‘surprised’ to find himself declared persona non grata in Canada. Furthermore, Illi feels that

not being allowed to travel to any North American destination [Illi is also barred from entering the USA] is a violation of the basic human right of freedom to travel

As with other interesting interpretations of human rights, Illi offers up a very peculiar view of what that human right means – a view that almost perfectly mirrors his interpretation of religious freedom: that he may go wherever he wants. But that is not what freedom to travel is about. Just like freedom of religion means that people have the right to refuse your religion, freedom to travel means that although you have the right to travel, it does not give you the automatic right to be welcome everywhere, nor the right to impose your presence upon others. Although you may depart whenever you like, your destination has the right to refuse you. You can travel – but only to destinations where people want you.

There is no human right to be welcome.

If you have overstayed your welcome before you arrive you may be doing something wrong.

So how dangerous is saying ‘Merry Christmas’?

Posted on by

A group of hysteric bible-thumpers recently tried to make everyone aware of the ‘War on Christmas’, and pointed to new Texas legislation that made it legal to say ‘Merry Christmas’. I laughed. Then I saw this worried cleric. He states that saying ‘Merry Christmas’ is ‘worse than killing someone’. Well, that at least explains Texas gun laws.

Actually, the full quote is:

“This [saying Merry Christmas] is worse than fornication, and drinking alcohol, and killing someone”

Now, I don’t want to be a spoil-sport, but above sentence looks a bit like like the religious version of ‘spot the looney‘.

My Religious Freedom – at the cost of yours?

Posted on by

Tomorrow, a group of muslims are planning to march through London’s Brick Lane, protesting the sale of alcohol. They are against it because they say it is un-islamic and causes social problems (presumably the drinking, not selling of booze – but with religious people you are never sure). While alcohol consumption can (and does) cause social problems, you can bet your last cent that the real reason for their protest is that it’s not allowed for a muslim to drink alcohol. So it’s a religious thing, not a social concern.

If you don’t want to drink alcohol, that’s your prerogative. But here is the problem: The goal of the protesters is to strong-arm shop owners into not selling alcohol. The protesters don’t just want people to stop drinking by their own volition: just like the gang of muslim thugs a few weeks earlier that tried to enforce homophobic sharia law in the streets of London, the protesters want to outlaw the sale and consumption of alcohol for all. If you don’t want me to sell or drink alcohol, well, go and get stuffed. That’s my decision, not yours. Citing religious freedom to impose your views on me means not understanding what the word freedom actually means.

Religions are being discriminated against!

Posted on by

CNN has published a list of the world’s 10 most dangerous terrorists. That list is an outrage:

  • All members are Islamic. No Christian, Jew, Sikh – not even a Jehova Witness! And we all know how those Watchtower Goons terrorize Bus Terminals and Railway Stations all across the nation! But no, only the Islamists get mentioned. Why is that? This list discriminates against other beliefs.
  • Male only. No woman is mentioned, not even in a Runner-up list. This in spite of the fact that there are some well known female terrorists that have much cooler names – like for example the White Widow. This list is typically misogynic westerner fare.
  • Territorial bias. Everyone on the list originates from, or lives in, the middle east/asia. We have great terrorists all around the world! Did everyone just forget Carlos, the ETA or IRA? Isn’t it enough that the Saudis have all the oil?

We can’t let this stand. We must remove the dominance of Islam on this list! Petition your representative at the UN to stop this gross injustice. Advocate a 10 point agenda for religions, continents and women to have at least 2 individuals in the top three each. And screw the math!

We must stop the dominance of Islamist terror.

The Ministry of Silly Talks

Posted on by

I have some strange quirks. One of them is that, although not british, I like – and dare I say: comprehend – Monty Python. Not just ‘Life Of Brian’; to this day I can’t help but glance expectantly towards the door whenever I hear the words ‘Spanish Inquisition’.

Unfortunately, the world of humor is drifting perilously close to reality. For over a year now, Britain has a Minister of Faith. A few years ago I thought the Ministry of Silly Walks was a high point in comedy; now there is a Minister of Silly Thoughts.

Last week, the Minister, Baroness Warsi, on the subject of Islam extremism treated the british Parliament to quote from The West Wing, following it up with a particularly thin version of the No True Scotsman argument.

This has led me to believe (ha!) that the Baroness is now the prime candidate for the soon-to-be-formed Ministry of Silly Talks.

A muslim peace conference

Posted on by

In Oslo, Islam Net – a group of self-described moderate muslims – gathered for a peace conference. A video excerpt from the March conference was published by the organizers on the internet. In it, Fahad Qureshi, one of the hosts, took to the stage to hold a speech that could have been taken straight from The Twilight Zone:

Qureshi protested the fact that many of the invited speakers could not come to the conference. They were barred from entering the country because they were accused of preaching hate. That accusation is false – these people merely preach killing homosexuals, stoning for adulterers, and capital punishment for blasphemy and apostasy.

That’s not hate, Qureshi continued, nor an extremist position. Rather, it’s their religion; the righteous will of God. That’s not hate, it’s virtue. Everyone in the room agreed.

Remember, this was a peace conference.

And people tell me I shouldn’t say that religion makes you stupid.

Remembering Aisha

Posted on by

Before Malala, there was Aisha.

Sadly, this is not a story of inspiration.

Five years ago today, at age 13, she was murdered. Her crime: being raped.

As reported by the Independent:

A 13-year-old Somali girl, Aisha Ibrahim Duhulow, was buried up to her neck and stoned by 50 men in front of 1,000 people at a stadium in Kismayu in 2008. Her father told Amnesty International she had been raped by three men but was accused of adultery when she tried to report the rape to the [islamist] al-Shabaab militia.

1000 forced spectators. 50 barbaric murderers. 3 rapists. One helpless child.

No merciful God.

“Why I hate Malala”

Posted on by

Kunwar Khuldune Shahid expressed his thoughts pointedly:

“How can I accept Malala to be a hero, when her speeches do not have any Islamic or nationalistic agenda? How can I consider her to be my future leader when nothing she says or does imbues a false sense of superiority in me as a Muslim or a Pakistani? How can I accept that a young girl was able to highlight who our actual enemies are, when grown up men in our parliaments are still hell bent on befriending them? How can I rejoice at Malala’s global achievement when I’ve been taught all my life that a girl’s place is in the kitchen? I just can’t.”

Aptly, succinctly put.

An even better read are the comments. Evidently half the commenters couldn’t find their own humor with both hands and a flashlight.

Open question: will Kunwar be declared an honorary Saudi before they discover sarcasm?

Good News: Brunei to advance into Dark Age

Posted on by

More good news from the Gulf Region: Brunei is taking big steps to modernize their society. They are about to reach parity with the 8th century. Because everyone knows that the best things come from the Good Old Times that – for reasons unknown – are also called the ‘Dark Ages’.

Details are still sketchy, but here are the main points:

  • Dual laws!
    Because more is better, Brunei now has two sets of laws instead of one. Why would ‘One Law For All’ be something to aspire to, when it wasn’t implemented anyway? Taking a page from London with their Sharia courts, the Sheik has expanded on that idea. While neighboring Malaysia only made ‘Allah’ a trademark to be used exclusively by muslims, Brunei reportedly now went full-in with a separate law for muslims. How’s that for progress?
     
  • Severing limbs for theft! 
    This classic is finally back, and is sure to be a hoot in your neighborhood. Since capital punishment has been proven to be such an effective deterrent (see Texas, where murder is practically unheard of), it’s smaller sibling is now expected to end thieving once and for all.
     
  • Stoning for adulterers!
    Again a crowd favorite, the re-introduction of this punishment will finally ensure the fidelity of every muslim in Brunei. At the same time it is hoped that this will re-invigorate Brunei’s flagging stonemasonry trade.

Understandably, to make these important changes a reality, Brunei has postponed less pressing changes like implementing civil rights or baseline democracy. Reportedly, though, they are still on track for the next millennium.

The streets of Riyadh…

Posted on by

Big changes are coming to Saudi Arabia. In a few month, women may enjoy an unprecedented freedom. Unprecedented, that is, for Saudi Arabia. Determined to liberate their women, the Saudis may even disregard their clerics’ most dire warnings about possible dangers to women’s health. Soon, even Saudi women may be allowed to drive cars. 

Wow. There are about one million other things that country could do to empower women. But they choose to allow what – according to 98% of all men around the world – is the one thing they shouldn’t. Then again, it’s not the woman’s health these concerned men worry about – it’s their car’s.

In unrelated news, 98% of all men believe they have above average driver’s skills.