< Islam & The West - Opinions Of A Kashmiri Nomad
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A Canadian Town's Message To Muslims
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
It is one thing not to like Muslims or Islam but it is quite another thing being deliberately not clever.

The small town council of Herouxville in Canada has produced a little piece of advice for any Muslim that wishes to set up home in the town limits.

The author of the declaration is councillor Andre Drouin. In no uncertain terms he outlines the norms that are acceptable to him and probably to many others in the town:

"We wish to inform these new arrivals that the way of life which they abandoned when they left their countries of origin cannot be recreated here," the declaration reads.

"We consider it completely outside norms to... kill women by stoning them in public, burning them alive, burning them with acid, circumcising them etc." (Source: BBC News)

With sentiments being expressed like these anyone reading this post would assume that the town near Montreal is being over-run by Muslims killing women by stoning in public, Muslims burning women alive, Muslims burning women with acid and Muslims circumcising females. Out of the town's population of approximately 1,300 how many of them are non-white immigrants ? According to the BBC website just one family has an origin of recent immigration to the town.

The point of this post is not to deny that some Muslims do stone women to death while others to burn women to death and others still do circumcise females. But to assume that all Muslims do this is just showing a lack of ability to logically reason or worse still a desire not to.

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posted by Kashmiri Nomad at 23:17:00 |

Kashmiri Nomad

Muslims, Britain And Multi-Culturalism
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
The British media has been awash for the last 24 hours with the findings of a new report on Islam, Muslims and multi-culturalism.

The basic premise behind the Policy Exchange and its latest offering entitled "Living apart together British Muslims and the paradox of multiculturalism" is that multi-culturalism as exemplified by the British model has given succour to Islamic extremism in the Muslim youth of Britain.

Below is a summary of a survey carried out by Munira Mirza the head of the report used to justify her assertions regarding mutli-culturalism:

* 71% of over-55s compared with 62% of 16 to 24-year-olds feel they have as much, if not more, in common with non-Muslims in Britain than with Muslims abroad

* 19% of over-55s compared with 37% of 16 to 24-year-olds would prefer to send their children to Islamic state schools

* 17% of over-55s compared with 37% of 16 to 24-year-olds would prefer living under Sharia law than British law

* 28% of over-55s compared with 74% of 16 to 24-year-olds prefer Muslim women to choose to wear the hijab

* 3% of over-55s compared with 13% of 16 to 24-year-olds admire organisations like al-Qaeda that are prepared to fight the West.

The authors of the report blame the pervasiveness of multi-culturalism as the cause of this rise.

"The emergence of a strong Muslim identity in Britain is, in part, a result of multicultural policies implemented since the 1980s, which have emphasised difference at the expense of shared national identity.

"Religiosity amongst younger Muslims is not about following their parents" cultural traditions, but rather, their interest in religion is more politicised." (Source: BBC News)

As can be imagined the non-Muslim population of Britain are not too happy about the findings of this report. The overall feeling seems to be that all Muslims are ungrateful scrounging leeches.

"They come over to our Christian secular country and then prefer Sharia law."

" They come over to our Christian secular country and then support terrorism."

All the news bulletins have lead with the report and its conclusions. Most of the discussion on talk and current affairs based radio stations has been about this report. Even with so much publicity and discussion it appears that the general public will not be told about some of the "facts" behind the report and its authors.

"AN OPINION poll claiming to show that multiculturalism has driven Muslim youth to extremism dominated yesterday’s news headlines.

But further investigation has shown the Policy Exchange report to be little more than a sham.

The first warning signs were the refusal of the think tank to reveal their methodology and the questions they asked.

Closer analysis of the "Living Apart Together" report indicates a high level of spin in the conclusions.

Experts say that far from being an "independent" think tank, Policy Exchange is actually a right-wing neo-Con leaning outfit, a reality that journalists failed to spot amid a blitz of media coverage yesterday (29th January 2007).

The lead author Munira Mirza was unable to speak to Blink yesterday. Her press contact Steven King said: "She's very busy dealing with the national media."

When it was pointed out that Blink is a national website, he responded: "I mean the BBC, CNN and so on."

Yesterday’s report is not the first time Policy Exchange has sought to influence the public debate around Muslim affairs. They played a key role in a Channel 4 documentary last July which heavily criticised the Muslim Council of Britain and promoted the little heard-of Sufi Council as being a more moderate voice.

The Policy Exchange reports findings differ wildly from a comprehensive survey of Muslim views last October by The 1990 Trust." (Source: Blink)

Image: Munira Mirza

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posted by Kashmiri Nomad at 20:48:00 |

Kashmiri Nomad

LiveLeak Video: Even Porn Stars Have Standards
In the general run of things in this world one would assume that porn stars are not the most choosiest of people or have the highest standards when it comes to "work colleagues". For one thing a porn star has to carry himself/herself in the nude performing acts that most would not want recorded and then broadcast around the world. However after watching this video I have come to the conclusion that one should not be so judgemental about porn stars.

For instance this particular porn star whose name I do not know, does not mind "performing" in front of a camera with a member of the Klu Klux Klan or a retarded person or an ugly person or a smelly person. Having said that there is one type of person that this porn star will never ever "work" with in a porn movie, can you guess which type of person it is ?

WARNING THIS VIDEO CONTAINS STRONG LANGUAGE AND MATERIAL OF AN ADULT NATURE.



The next person who tries to convince you of the fact that porn stars do not have standards just show them this video.

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posted by Kashmiri Nomad at 03:05:00 |

Kashmiri Nomad

Eurabia, Dhimmitude And Anti-Islam Bigotry
Monday, January 29, 2007
We have on more than one occasion looked at the claim that Europe has fallen under the jack boots of "Islamic invaders".

For a definition of the term Eurbia, its usage and articles related to this topic please click on the following links: American Network News And Eurabia, The Lie of Eurabia and Video: Fox News On Islam And Britain

Now onto the matter of today's post. A report has been produced on behalf of the European Parliament by the European Monitoring Centre for Racism and Xenophobia. This report highlights the extent of anti-Islam bigotry in "Eurabia".

The report puts another nail into the contention that Islam has overtaken Europe, Christians are cowering under Dhimmitude and the modern day Caliphate is alive and well in European capital cities.

"A Euro report on discrimination against Muslims and Islamaphobia records anti- Muslim incidents in France.

The outrages continue day after day, week after week, year after year.

Here is an extract:

16.03.2004 Bastia, punitive raid by 15 high school pupils against north African pupils from another school;

16.03.2004, Clichy, desecration of six Muslim tombs;

24.03.2004, desecration of three Muslim tombs;

29.03.2004, Attempted arson against a place of worship;

29.03.2004, Oberhaus, damage to a Muslim funeral parlour;

31.03.2004, Creil, attempted arson against a mosque.

The swelling hatred against Muslims is not confined to France. The report reveals that in Spain, for example, over the past year positive opinions of Muslims held by people have declined from 46 to 29 per cent. Respondents in Germany also have a majority negative view. Things are better in Britain, but even here opinion is on the slide towards Islamaphobia with good attitudes about the Muslim community slumping from 72 to 63 per cent.

Stereotypical attitudes predominate.

The report says: "In Germany, two opinion polls published by the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung in late 2004 asked respondents what they associate with “Islam”: The most common concepts were “suppression of women” (93 per cent) and “terror” (83 per cent); only six per cent of the respondents described the Islamic faith as “likeable”

"In the United Kingdom, research by York University in April 2005 found 43 per cent of youths in regional towns and cities becoming more Islamophobic. Ten per cent of 13-24 year olds supported the BNP and nearly a quarter opposed Muslim women wearing the head scarf. A Mori poll for the BBC conducted on 8-9 August this year showed that 32 percent thought that multiculturalism “threatens the British way of life”."

The report finds that Muslims are the victims of a double whammy. Apart from these psychological attitudes that do lead to hatred, the social and economic position of Muslims, many of whom were born and bred in the UK and Europe, encourages isolation and feelings of alienation, especially among the young.

Throughout Europe the report finds that Muslims suffer the highest rates of unemployment of any other ethnic group, the worst housing conditions, with many still corralled into poor ghettos, and have the least educational opportunities.

It reports on several tests investigating employment discrimination, often involving job application citing the same experience and qualifications, the only difference being a Muslim sounding or western name on top of the application. These revealed that a Muslim has up to a 50 times worse chance of getting an interview than a white applicant." (Source: The Asian News)

For those interested the whole report in PDF format can be accessed by clicking the following link :

European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia (EUMC)

UPDATE:

Some contrary to reality still believe that Europe is about to be over run by Islamic barbarians. Bernard Lewis is one such "Islam expert" here are his views on Eurabia and Dhimmitude.

"The Muslims "seem to be about to take over Europe," Lewis said at a special briefing with the editorial staff of The Jerusalem Post. Asked what this meant for the continent's Jews, he responded, "The outlook for the Jewish communities of Europe is dim." Soon, he warned, the only pertinent question regarding Europe's future would be, "Will it be an Islamized Europe or Europeanized Islam?

"Europeans are losing their own loyalties and their own self-confidence," he said. "They have no respect for their own culture." Europeans had "surrendered" on every issue with regard to Islam in a mood of "self-abasement," "political correctness" and "multi-culturalism," said Lewis, who was born in London to middle-class Jewish parents but has long lived in the United States." (Source: Jerusalem Post)

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posted by Kashmiri Nomad at 19:30:00 |

Kashmiri Nomad

Video: Some Americans Showing How Clever They Really Are
Sunday, January 28, 2007



Video courtesy of LGF Watch

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posted by Kashmiri Nomad at 22:49:00 |

Kashmiri Nomad

Muslims, Integration And The West
The topic of how best to integrate Muslims into western societies has been the bane of many a politician, pundit and blogger. To summarize there are roughly three main groups in relation to this subject:

(i) The "rejectors". This group believes that there is more chance of Hell freezing over than there is ever of integrating any Muslim into any type of civilization. The notion being that Muslims are unable to join the human race until they leave Islam. The end result of this type of thinking is that all Muslims must be either willingly or forcibly removed from western societies as they will never be able to become civilised until they leave Islam and will always constitute a security threat.

(ii) The "appeasers". This group believes that many injustices have been meted out to Muslims by western nations and therefore an open door policy must be established. Any Muslim demand no matter how "outrageous" in nature must be accepted. The end result to this type of thinking is that "Islamic Caliphate" is established in the west.

(iii) The "realists". This group realises that there are many difficult obstacles in the road to the "integration" of Muslims in western societies. However this group believes that for the good of the human race the project of "assimilation / integration" must be given a chance. A process that not only respects the interests of western societies but also the interests of Muslim communities.

In this light enter David Cameron the head of the British Conservative Party. He believes that moves by Tony Blair's government to force Muslims to accept a sense of common heritage and identity are simplistic. He will call for a new way to integrate Muslims living in Britain.

"DAVID CAMERON is to call for a "calm" new debate on Britishness that does not backfire by alienating ethnic minorities.

In his first significant intervention on the subject of faith and identity in Britain, the Tory leader will this week criticise "clunking" government ideas such as urging Britons to fly the Union Jack outside their homes.

He will warn that simplistic measures to promote national identity are unlikely to bring communities closer together.

Outlining a speech he will make in Birmingham tomorrow, Cameron said: "It's no use behaving like the proverbial English tourist abroad, shouting ever more loudly at the hapless foreigner who doesn't understand what is being said. We can't bully people into feeling British — we have to inspire them."

In what will be seen as a new bid to woo Muslim voters, Cameron will declare his party stands for a "broad and generous" vision of British identity.

He will make it clear the Tories are ready to fight for the interests of Muslims, calling for a new "crusade for fairness" to inspire loyalty from "every citizen".

Backing government moves to encourage all foreigners who settle in Britain to learn English, he writes: "Yes, we need to ensure that our children are taught British history properly. And I do think it is important to create more opportunities for celebrating our sense of nationhood." (Source: Sunday Times)

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posted by Kashmiri Nomad at 17:02:00 |

Kashmiri Nomad

Youtube Video: A History Of Iraq
Saturday, January 27, 2007
The following video is a 2002 production by British comedian Rory Bremner. It takes a satirical look at the recent history of Mesopotamia and the run up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq by coalition forces.

It is often quoted that many a truth is said in jest.




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posted by Kashmiri Nomad at 23:53:00 |

Kashmiri Nomad

Youtube Video: "Death To America"
The following video is a parody of the news channel Al-Jazeera English.

It is undoubtedly and unashamedly stereotypical in order to be comic. However the video raises the important question that how many Americans with the corporate media as their only contact to the Muslim world will believe that the sketch represents 100% the "Gospel Truth" ?



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posted by Kashmiri Nomad at 18:10:00 |

Kashmiri Nomad

Muslims, Britain And The Sabbath
The British public has recently had to endure another round of "Muslim inflicted" news stories. This trend began last year when an abundance of news reports on the face veil surfaced. We had the former British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw start the ball rolling:

"Jack Straw has called on Muslim women not to wear full veils in a bid to help relations with the rest of the community.

Mr Straw, a former Home and Foreign secretary, has revealed that he has taken to asking Muslim women to remove their veil when they visit his surgeries.

He says a veil could be seen as "a visible statement of separation and difference" - and some Muslim scholars don't believe it to be obligatory

Mr Straw writes that he has been mulling over the issue for about a year since a veiled woman attended his surgery and said she was pleased to meet him face to face.
Advertisement continued...

"The chance would be a fine thing', I thought to myself but did not say aloud," he continues.

He said the interview got him thinking about the "apparent incongruity between the signals which indicate common bonds".

"Above all, it was because I felt uncomfortable about talking to someone face-to-face' who I could not see," he added.

He said this caused him concern "about the wider implications for community relations of what is an increasing trend". (Source: The Blackburn Citizen)

There was the case of a Muslim teaching assistant who was fired from her job because she refused to take her face veil off. The teacher in question then launched a legal case against the decision demanding judicial review. She has lost the first stage of that battle but has vowed to continue.

Aishah Azmi, 24, was asked to remove the veil after Headfield Church of England school in Dewsbury said pupils found it hard to understand her.

She refused and was sacked after an employment tribunal ruled that she had not been discriminated against.

Mrs Azmi has now lodged papers with the Employment Appeals Tribunal in London.

In October, an employment tribunal dismissed her three claims for discrimination and harassment, although it did agree she had been victimised by Kirklees Council, the local education authority.

She was awarded £1,100 in damages.

Mrs Azmi's lawyer Nick Whittingham, of the Kirklees Law Centre, said on Saturday that her appeal would again focus on alleged discrimination around her religious beliefs. (Source: BBC News)

Then there was also the case of a Muslim police officer who was moved from protecting the Israeli embassy during the height of the Israel- Lebanon War.

"Scotland Yard said today that a decision to excuse a Muslim police protection officer from duties guarding the Israeli embassy during the Lebanon conflict in August was not taken for “politically correct” reasons but because the armed constable expressed concerns about the safety of his relatives in Lebanon." (Source: Daily Telegraph)

More recently there has been the case of a Muslim retail assistant who refused to serve a member of the public who wanted to buy cigarettes.

A SMOKER was refused cigarettes at a Cambridge store because the Muslim shop assistant said it was against her religion to sell tobacco.

A 31-year-old woman, who asked not to be identified, was shocked when she attempted to buy a pack of 20 cigarettes at the WH Smith store in Market Street and was turned down.

She said: "I asked for a pack of 20 Lambert & Butler and the woman behind the desk asked me if they were cigarettes.

"When I said they were she told me that it was against her religion to sell them - I couldn't believe my ears.

"I rang up the manager to complain and he said the shop assistant has to ask someone else to serve them for her if a customer wants tobacco.

"If she had just said, I can't serve you, then that would have been fair enough, but the thing that really annoyed me was the way she gave me a lecture as well.

"She started saying she doesn't agree with smoking, that it kills you - I was really gob-smacked." (Source: Cambridge Evening News)

Now the latest Muslim inflicted news item on the British public has been the case of a female Muslim police officer who refused to shake the hand of Sir. Ian Blair the highest ranking Police officer in the country.

"A Muslim woman police officer has sparked a new debate by refusing to shake hands with Britain's most senior police chief for religious reasons.

The incident happened at a passing-out parade where Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Ian Blair was inspecting a line-up of 200 recruits.

A senior police source said: "Before Sir Ian arrived she told her training supervisor that she was not going to shake his hand because it was against her religion.

"She also said she did not want her picture taken with the commissioner because they would only use it for propaganda.

"Sir Ian was informed on his arrival of the officer's request. This has never happened before and he was bloody furious. But he agreed to go along with it so as not to cause a scene.

"He went out and shook the hand of every single new recruit apart from her. It was very obvious and very embarrassing." (Source: Mail On Sunday)

The general media narrative in all of these cases has consistently been the same. Whether from political pundits to respected journalists to members of the general public the allegations have always been that Muslims do not integrate, Muslims are trying to take over Britain, Britain is a Christian country if they don't live by our traditions, customs and rules then they should leave etc etc etc.

I would like you to keep this thought in your mind and then imagine what the reaction will be to a news story like this:

"A JEWISH trainee cop has been excused from working on Friday afternoons — so he can observe the Sabbath.

The Metropolitan Police have altered his rota so he can attend synagogue.

But new recruits are told the job is a 24-hours-a-day, 365- days-a-year commitment.

The strict Orthodox Jew is training at Hendon Police College in North West London.

His religion states that the Sabbath is the weekly day of rest that begins at Friday sunset and ends at sunset on Saturday.

Police shifts can be organised to accommodate religious and personal requirements.

A Met spokesman said yesterday: "We have allowed him Friday afternoons off providing he makes up the hours."

But the recruit has been told that if there is a major incident, he will be expected to report in.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Steve Roberts told London radio station LBC: “Special allowances are made for people who have other sensitivities. That’s about being a good manager. It’s also about discrimination laws." (Source: The Sun)

Will there be any mention that the followers of Judaism are not integrating ? Will there any mention that the followers of Judaism are trying to take over Britain ? Will there any mention that the followers of Judaism should be reminded of the fact that Britain is a Christian country and if they don't like this Christian nation's traditions, customs and rules then should they leave etc etc etc.

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posted by Kashmiri Nomad at 01:23:00 |

Kashmiri Nomad

Youtube Video: The Dick & Wolf Show
Thursday, January 25, 2007



Is he really supported by the Christian Evangelical Right ?

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posted by Kashmiri Nomad at 20:15:00 |

Kashmiri Nomad

A Snowy View Of Gulmarg


This is Gulmarg a tourist resort in Kashmir. The picture is taken in winter as you can see and after a good amount of snow fall. The resort has a golf course at the highest altitude anywhere in the world and is also known for other sports like skiing.

Image: Rocket 57246

 
posted by Kashmiri Nomad at 18:39:00 |

Kashmiri Nomad

Israel And The U.S. Presidential Race 2008
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
Both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have signalled their respective intentions to run in the 2008 U.S. Presidential race.

It seems that things are hotting up even though the election is not for another year. The Jerusalem Post has done an article on the proposed candidates and their support of Israeli issues.

Democrats

(i) Senator Hillary Clinton: Pro-Israel lobbyists say Clinton's voting record on issues related to funding for Israel and isolating its enemies, including Iran and Syria, has been top notch, and she has visited the country multiple times since becoming a senator.

(ii) Senator Joe Biden : Pro-Israel advocates say there's a substantial gap between Biden's rhetoric and how he ultimately votes: He has a solid pro-Israel voting record and was a leader of the successful effort last year to pass the Palestinian Anti-Terrorism Act, which isolates the Palestinian Authority's Hamas leadership as long as it backs terrorism and refuses to recognize Israel.

(iii) Senator Barack Obama : Obama has cultivated a solidly pro-Israel record, and he visited the Jewish state last year. He has developed close ties with Chicago's Jewish community, and some of its major donors backed him among more than a dozen candidates - some Jewish - in the 2004 primaries.

(iv) Senator John Edwards : He drew loud applause when he endorsed AIPAC's trademark issue: isolating Iran as long as it resists nuclear transparence.

"For years I have argued that the United States has not been doing enough to deal with the growing threat in Iran," he said. "While we've talked about the dangers of nuclear terrorism, we've largely stood on the sidelines as the problems got worse. I believe that for far too long, we've abdicated our responsibility to deal with the Iranian threat to the Europeans."

Republicans

(v) Senator John McCain: McCain has a solid pro-Israel record, and he has been outspoken about isolating Iran as long as it poses a nuclear threat. He made that call most recently in a satellite address at this week's Herzliya Conference and in October at an American Israel Public Affairs Committee conference.

(vi) Rudy Giuliani: Giuliani had overwhelming Jewish support as New York mayor from 1993 to 2001, once booting Yasser Arafat out of a concert hall: The federal government may need to deal with the once and future terrorist, Giuliani said, but he did not.

Giuliani has visited Israel multiple times, and formed a fast friendship with his Jerusalem counterpart at the time, Ehud Olmert, who is now Israel's prime minister.

(vii) Senator Sam Brownback: is a leader on pro-Israel issues, especially relating to Israel's claim to Jerusalem.

(viii) Newt Gingrich: has a stellar pro-Israel record and was the architect of the 2004 campaign strategy of reaching out to Jewish voters by emphasizing President Bush's pro-Israel record." (Source: Jerusalem Post)

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posted by Kashmiri Nomad at 19:30:00 |

Kashmiri Nomad

Tony Blair, Secular Democracy And Homosexuals
One of the reasons given for the wars that are being fought in Iraq and Afghanistan by coalition forces is to establish secular democracies in the Muslim world. Democracies that will have a strict separation between religion, politics and legislation. In this vain Turkey is upheld by western officials as an example to be emulated by all Muslim societies.

While British service personal are giving their blood and lives around the globe in pursuit of this goal Tony Blair at home is doing quite the opposite. He is backing religious involvement in matters of politics and legislation.

The story revolves around a new law entitled "The Sexual Orientation (Provision of Goods and Services) Regulations". It will be enacted in April 2007 and is designed to stop discrimination.

"Using power they gave themselves through the Equality Act 2006, the government are pushing through a new law (the SOR) which will make it illegal for anyone who provides goods, services, facilities, premises, education or public functions to someone else, to discriminate against that person on the grounds of their sexual orientation i.e. whether they are homosexual, heterosexual or bisexual." (Source: Cross Rhythms)

The Roman Catholic Church has demanded an opt out clause so that they can refuse homosexual couples who wish to use the Church's childrens adoption service. In essence allowing Roman Catholics to discriminate against homosexuals. This demand has now been supported by the Anglican Church as well.

"The Church of England put pressure on the Prime Minister last night over the gay adoptions row with a letter giving warning that “rights of conscience cannot be made subject to legislation”.

The Archbishops of Canterbury and York declared on the side of the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Westminster after Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor wrote to every member of the Cabinet stating that the Catholic Church could not accept a law forcing its adoption agencies to accept gay couples."

What has been the response of Tony Blair to the gay adoption row ?

"It is thought that Mr Blair, an Anglican whose wife is a Catholic and who has long been known to be sympathetic to the Church himself, favours a compromise."

"Mr Blair signalled his support for Catholic adoption agencies to opt out of gay rights laws despite accusations of blackmail by bishops threatening their closure.

Downing Street said Mr Blair had taken charge of the search for a compromise amid a stand-off between the Catholic Church and supporters of gay rights over a new law to curb discrimination. But supporters of the new regulations insisted there was no scope for a middle way without breaching the principles of equality law." (Source: Times Online)

So much for strict separation of religion, politics and legislation.

Image : Russia G8

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posted by Kashmiri Nomad at 17:36:00 |

Kashmiri Nomad

Glenn Beck, Bill O'Reilly And Christianity
There is as we speak a concerted effort by a state to wipe out Christmas and any other semblance of Christianity from its boarders. The state in question is ranked as a leading producer and exporter of heroin to the world. This state is also run by a totalitarian regime that crushes any opposition to its rule with an iron fist.

Any guesses as to the official religion of this state ? Is it Islam ? No the answer is Buddhism and the state is Myanmar formerly known as Burma.

"The military regime in Burma is intent on wiping out Christianity in the country, according to claims in a secret document believed to have been leaked from a government ministry. Entitled "Programme to destroy the Christian religion in Burma", the incendiary memo contains point by point instructions on how to drive Christians out of the state.

The text, which opens with the line "There shall be no home where the Christian religion is practised", calls for anyone caught evangelising to be imprisoned.

Its discovery follows widespread reports of religious persecution, with churches burnt to the ground, Christians forced to convert to the state religion, Buddhism, and their children barred from school.

Human rights groups claim that the treatment meted out to Christians, who make up six per cent of the population, is part of a wider campaign by the regime, also targeted at ethnic minority tribes, to create a uniform society in which the race and language is Burmese and the only accepted religion is Buddhism." (Source: Daily Telegraph)

What is the likelihood that one will hear this news story either on Glenn Beck's CNN television show or on Bill O'Reilly's No Spin Zone ? As very vocal protectors of Christian values one would assume they would have a lot to say about the situation of Christianity in Myanmar. I doubt that this story will get much coverage though on either shows as the two most important ingredients are missing from this news piece and they are Islam and Muslims.

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posted by Kashmiri Nomad at 17:35:00 |

Kashmiri Nomad

Muslim Majority Schools In Britain Are A Security Threat
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
An advisor to the British government has warned that Muslim majority schools in the United Kingdom pose a strategic security threat. The adviser's recommendations include forced integration of Muslim pupils into multi-faith schools and citizenship classes for all.

"Sir Cyril Taylor, chairman of the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust, said the concentration of ethnic minorities and religious groups in certain schools had created a 'strategic security problem'.

He said that allowing significant numbers of ethnic minority children to lead virtually separate lives was fuelling extremism and harming academic standards.

The call for forced integration came as a Government commissioned report is this week set to recommend that values such as justice and tolerance should be at the centre of citizenship classes for secondary pupils.

The citizenship curriculum review by former headmaster and Home Office adviser Sir Keith Ajegbo is expected to conclude that more emphasis should be placed on British identity and more must be done to proved the 'essential glue' that holds society together.

Sir Cyril said: "In some parts of the country, for example, where children only speak Bangla at home and do not mix with other communities at school, it has become a real strategic security problem.

"They would be much more likely to collaborate with the police and tell them [whether] people within their own community are doing things they shouldn't be doing if they were better integrated.

"Where you have two schools, one that is predominantly white and the other that is majority Bangladeshi or Pakistani, the answer is to close them both and put them together in a new academy operating on a multifaith basis." (Source: London Evening Standard)

The only problem I can see with this plan is that there must be some non-Muslim parents who do not want their children attending schools with Muslims and the opposite is also true to some extant.

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posted by Kashmiri Nomad at 22:37:00 |

Kashmiri Nomad

Freedom Fries And The Freedom To Be Bribed
At the height of the war of words between American protagonists and their opponents in "old Europe" over the invasion and subsequent war in Iraq, former Republican Congressman Bob Ney believed it necessary to change the name of French Fries. He ordered that French Fries being served in the cafeteria at the House of Representatives be re-named Freedom Fries in apparent support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Since this highlight in his political career it appears that Mr. Nye has not been having a very good time.

The former Republican representative for Ohio resigned his position in November 2006 after pleading guilty to accepting "gifts" from lobbyists in return for political favours. Mr. Nay was implicated in the now infamous scandal involving Republican lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

"Mr. Nay has recently been sentenced by an American court to a fine of $6000 and a prision sentence to run for two and half years.

Judge Ellen Segal Huvelle of the US district court for Washington DC also imposed a fine of $6000 and ordered Ney to serve two years of supervised release following his 30 months imprisonment.

Ney had faced a maximum of 10 years in prison, but his sentence was reduced as part of a plea bargain in which he agreed to cooperate with a wider investigation into Abramoff and official corruption.

He admitted to opposing legislation and inserted statements into the legislature's official record at Abramoff's request, in return for thousands of dollars in campaign contributions.

In court he said he was fighting "the demons of addiction that are within me".

He abandoned his re-election campaign in August because of questions over his links to Abramoff.

Ney, who represented an Ohio district in congress from 1994 to 2006 and is the only congressman convicted and sentenced in the scandal, has been a major embarrassment for the Republicans.

Earlier in March, Randy Cunningham, another Republican congressman, has been jailed for more than eight years for taking $2.4 million in bribes in return for influencing defence contracts.

Tom DeLay, the former Republican majority leader, had also resigned from congress last year over charges of violating campaign finance rules.

Ney was possibly best known for renaming "French Fries" in the House of Representatives' cafeteria, as "Freedom Fries", as a protest to France's opposition to the US-led invasion of Iraq." (Source: Al-Jazeera)

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posted by Kashmiri Nomad at 20:04:00 |

Kashmiri Nomad

Security Threat Or Freedom Of Expression
Monday, January 22, 2007
With the case of Mr. Bruno Gollnisch barley out of our minds the latest case of freedom expression is doing the rounds on the world's news services.

This time an airline passenger has been barred from Qantas flights after he wore a T-shirt depicting the American President George W. Bush as a terrorist. The barred passenger is threatening legal action.

"Mr Jasson was stopped as he was about to board the flight from Melbourne to London last Friday.

Qantas said the T-shirt had potential to offend other passengers.

The T-shift features an image of President George W Bush, along with the slogan "World's Number One Terrorist".

The 55-year-old computer specialist, who lives in London, had encountered difficulties with the same T-shirt on an earlier Qantas flight in December.

After clearing the international security checks at Melbourne Airport, he reportedly approached the gate manager to congratulate him on the company's new-found open-mindedness.