Tag Archives: Islam

Charlie Hebdo

Cross-posted on the Corner. The revolting terrorist assault on Charlie Hebdo today is designed to intimidate for the future as much as to ‘punish’ for the past. And I suspect that it has, to some degree, been encouraged by opinion … Continue reading

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On Living in a Theocracy

Gulf News: Manama: Saudi Arabia’s efforts to edge closer to setting a minimum age for marriage have received a blow after the Grand Mufti said there was nothing wrong with girls below 15 getting married. “There is currently no intention … Continue reading

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‘Religious Freedom’, Dogs and Taxis

CBC: A Saskatoon man who is blind and uses a service animal has launched a complaint to the Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission, alleging a local taxi company is not providing service because of his guide dog. Mike Simmonds claims he’s … Continue reading

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ISIS: Making the Trains Run on Time (Apparently)

The Independent In the cities and towns across the desert plains of north-east Syria, the ultra-hardline al-Qa’ida offshoot Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isis) has insinuated itself into nearly every aspect of daily life. The ‘Islamic State’ group, … Continue reading

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Saudi Arabia, a Reminder

Writing in the New York Times, Ed Husain: Let’s be clear: Al Qaeda, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, Boko Haram, the Shabab and others are all violent Sunni Salafi groupings. For five decades, Saudi Arabia has been the … Continue reading

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Bacon: “Offensive” Apparently

From WPTZ, Vermont: WINOOSKI, Vt. —A sign on a lamp post at the bottom of the Winooski Circle displayed the words “Yield Sneakers Bacon” until Friday morning. The bistro owners took it down. A city program put it in place … Continue reading

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What is Europe’s anti-Semitism problem about?

In Slate, Europe Has a Serious Anti-Semitism Problem, and It’s Not All About Israel: A recent Anti-Defamation League survey found that 24 percent of the French population and 21 percent of the German population harbor some anti-Semitic attitudes. A recent study of anti-Semitic … Continue reading

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As We Await the End Times

Cross-posted on Ricochet. The art of writing a first paragraph is said to lie in the ability to draw the reader in. I would say that Lily Lynch’s remarkable new piece in The Balkanist passes that test very well indeed: … Continue reading

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Melancholy, Long, Withdrawing

More on the Maajid Nawaz affair, and specifically, a letter from Britain’s National Secular Society on the next step in Britain’s retreat from the open society: We are writing in response to a package presented by news correspondent Katie Razzall, … Continue reading

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‘A Modern Bedlam’

Cross-posted in the Corner. Writing in the Guardian, Nick Cohen, with more grim news about the state of multiculturalist Britain: Extremists are menacing the career and life of a Liberal Democrat politician and respectable society hardly considers these authentically scandalous … Continue reading

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