Racist? Arab/Americans Want Coca Cola Super Bowl Ad Pulled or Changed

Good Lord, people have been calling for V.W. to pull its Super Bowl ad because some found it racist, and now Arab/Americans are calling for the Coca Cola company to pull its  'Coke Chase 2013' ad, also scheduled for the Super Bowl, because they believe it too is racist. Why? Because it shows an Arab man walking his camels in the desert, along with some Mad Max type motorcyclists, a bus load of Vegas showgirls and a bunch of cowboys all headed for a huge bottle of coke in the middle of a hot desert.

The president of the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), Warren David, asked:

"Why is it that Arabs are always shown as either oil-rich sheiks, terrorists, or belly dancers?" 

Uh, why not?  Arabs don't have camels? There aren't oil-rich sheiks?  Or terrorists or belly dancers in the Middle East? His statement in and of itself is quite a put down, at least to belly dancers and oil-rich sheiks.

Perhaps they are taking umbrage with the fact that people can vote for which character should win the race except the Arab.

"The Coke commercial for the Super Ball is racist, portraying Arabs as backward and foolish Camel Jockeys, and they have no chance to win in the world," Imam Ali Siddiqui, president of the Muslim Institute for Interfaith Studies, said in an email.

and

"What message is Coke sending with this?" asked Abed Ayoub, ADC's director of legal and policy affairs. "By not including the Arab in the race, it is clear that the Arab is held to a different standard when compared to the other characters in the commercial," he said.

The way I see it, is the Arab is a calm observer watching the Westerners do whatever nastiness it takes to win the race. I'd be more upset at how they were portrayed than the Arab.

Ayoub said:

"I want to know why this happened and how can we fix this if possible before Sunday." 

Here's my advice: learn the meaning of creative license and get a life.

Turkish Group Accuses Lego of Racism Over Star Wars Toy

The Hagia Sophia in Istanbul was the worlds greatest Byzantine cathedral until the marauding, imperialist Ottomans converted it to a mosque in the 15th century. In the early 20th century it was turned into a museum, although religious Muslims  want it turned back into a mosque. But I digress. Now Turks in Austria are complaining that Lego's 'Jabba's Palace' toy is racist and offensive to Muslims because the building looks like their Hagia Sophia  mosque, conveniently or stupidly forgetting that the structure was originally a church, and more importantly based on the original Star Wars film structure, so, obviously not racist at all.

Jabba's Palace in Star Wars

The toy includes the 'palace' that the character Jabba the Hutt- from the Star Wars series- resides in, along with a watchtower.  They also believe it resembles the Jami al-Kabir mosque in Beirut.

Apparently the outrage and backlash started after a Turkish man's son received the toy as a gift.

After investigating, Dr Melissa Günes, General Secretary of the Turkish Cultural Community, said that Lego had been contacted with an official complaint.

They have also taken offense to being shown as "deceitful and criminal personalities", and want an apology form Lego "for its cultural insensitivity".

A statement posted on the organisation's website refers to Jabba the Hutt as a 'terrorist' and says that he 'likes to smoke hookah and have his victims killed'.

It adds: 'It is clear that the ugly figure of Jabba and the whole scene smacks of racial prejudice and vulgar insinuations against Asians and Orientals as people with deceitful and criminal personalities.'

The statement says that the figures in the set are made to resemble 'terrorists, criminals and murderers'.

Referring to weapons contained in the set, the statement suggests that the 'combination of temple building and bunker facilities where shots are fired cannot be appropriate for children between 9 and 14 years old'.

They will sue if they don't get an apology.

Lego's response:

Lego's Katharina Sasse said: 'The Lego Star Wars product Jabba´s Palace does not reflect any actually existing buildings, people, or the mentioned mosque.

'The Lego mini-figures are all modelled on characters from the movie.

'We regret that the product has caused the members of the Turkish cultural community to come to a wrong interpretation, but point out that when designing the product only the fictional content of the Star Wars saga were referred to.'

These people really need to get thicker hides. It's not always about them. It's a game, for goodness sake. And why were they not offended back when Jabba first appeared in the George Lucas films?

Lebanon Thinking Of Suing Showtime's "Homeland" Producers

Unfortunately, I've never seen the Emmy award-winning "Homeland" since I don't have Showtime, but it looks really interesting. Based on an Israeli TV series "Hatufim" (Prisoners of War), the U.S. version is obviously quite different. Our "Homeland" deals with the return of an American prisoner of war, and the possibility that he was "turned" by Al Qaeda while in captivity.  Shot mostly in Charlotte, NC- subbing for Virginia and Washington DC-  some scenes have been filmed in Israel- subbing for Lebanon. That happens all the time, for various reasons. In the case of Charlotte, all the NC film incentives wooed the production there. As for Lebanon, well that's quite obvious- Israel is a much friendlier and safer country to film in than Lebanon, these days, especially since the co-creator Gideon Raff is Israeli.

But not everyone is thrilled about the 'thriller'. Lebanon is actually threatening to sue the production company because they feel the series shows them in an unflattering light.

A tourism minister told multiple media outlets this week that Lebanon is considering suing the Emmy-award-winning Showtime series because of its unflattering portrayal of Lebanon.

This kind of film damages the image of Lebanon — it is not fair to us and it’s not true, it is not portraying reality,” Fadi Abboud told the Beirut-based Executive magazine. “We want to take action, we want to write to the filmmakers and producers and demand an apology. And we are planning to raise a lawsuit against the director and the producer.”

Abboud pointed to a recent “Homeland” episode that featured snipers on Hamra Street in West Beirut, which according to the Associated Press is a lively neighborhood filled with cafes, book stores and bars.

“It showed Hamra Street with militia roaming in it. This does not reflect reality,” he told the AP. “It was not filmed in Beirut and does not portray the real image of Beirut.”

It's called a  'TV SERIES' folks, not a documentary, and they can portray Lebanon in whatever manner they choose.

They are also pissed off that the Lebanon scenes have been filmed in Tel Aviv.

A Lebanese woman told the AP it’s “insulting” for Tel Aviv to stand in for Beirut, saying, “Israel destroyed our country. Israel invaded and occupied our country.” 

Hezbollah leaders have never heard of the production, but will look into it.

Good luck with that law suit.

Egyptian Cleric Who Burned Bible In Front Of U.S. Embassy Faces Blasphemy Charges

At least Egypt isn't just targeting non-Muslims for blaspheming against Islam, they nabbed an uber-conservative cleric Ahmed Mohammed Mahmoud Abdallah, aka Sheikh Abu Islam, in Cairo for ripping up  some New Testament bibles and then burning them in front of the U.S. Embassy. Little does he realize, fool that he is, that although some might find his actions offensive, unlike them, we aren't going to take to the streets in violent rage and tear down and burn Egyptian flags at Egyptian embassies and consulates around the world.  That's the difference between them and us: we don't fly off the handle at religious slights, and what we consider as 'freedom of expression', right or wrong, offensive or not, they consider blasphemy. Unlike the Egyptian government calling for the arrest of Florida Pastor Terry Jones and several Coptic Christians who either were involved with or promoted (like Jones) the anti-Islam film "Innocence of Muslims", we're not about to issue an arrest warrant for Abu Islam.

Abu Islam- who co-owns Al Uma, a private Islamic TV station along with his ultra-conservative son- could face blasphemy charges against Christianity, something that rarely happens in that country.  The case goes to trial on September 30.

I'm sure Morsi couldn't care less that a bible was ripped up and burned, this isn't the first time it's happened, he's just trying to show the West that arresting blasphemers is the way to go,  which is probably what he wants us to do with all those involved in the "Innocence of Muslims" film.  But that isn't going to happen.

Islamic States (OIC) Try Again For Global Blasphemy Law

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has been attempting to squelch freedom of speech for a very  long time.  Now, members are taking advantage of the latest firestorm in the Middle East (over the "Innocence of Muslims" film, and the Charlie Hebdo Mohammed cartoons) to resurrect their efforts to force their way of thinking on the West.  They want a global ban on insulting religion; in fact, they want to make it a criminal offense, just like it is under Islamic Shariah law. And we all know what that means: a sentence of life in prison or death.

The secretary-general of the OIC, Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, called on the rest of the world to:

 “come out of hiding from behind the excuse of freedom of expression.”

He said the “deliberate, motivated and systematic abuse of this freedom” were a danger to global security and stability.

Uh, no. Freedom of expression is not a danger to global security and stability, a religion that has failed to modernize and evolve along with the bulk of its followers is what poses a threat to global stability. Instead of a decade-long effort trying to force those of us who cherish  freedom of expression (regardless of whether we find some things offensive or not), why not try reforming a religion that is in desperate need of it.

And then this:

Separately, the Human Rights Commission of the OIC, which has 57 members and is based in Saudi Arabia, said “growing intolerance towards Muslims”, had to be checked and called for “an international code of conduct for media and social media to disallow the dissemination of incitement material”.

There would be no "growing intolerance towards Muslims" if they weren't trying to shove their religious ideology and doctrine down our throats, or running around destroying property and killing people, including fellow Muslims. Ironically, there is far more intolerance within the Muslim community itself, but in their case they don't merely criticize they blow each other up.

Sorry, but hands off the West. You keep your Shariah, we'll keep our freedom of speech.

Tunisian Salafis Targeting "Un-Islamic" Cultural Events Worrisome

Angry Tunisian Islamists

Tunisia is taking a quick dive into Islamist hell.  I'm not sure what was expected when the people voted overwhelmingly for an Islamist leadership, but they're certainly getting what they voted for. Perhaps some were foolishly duped into thinking that they could trust the so-called 'moderate' Islamist Ennahda party's vows of moderate Islam; but guess what, it 'aint happening. The ultra-conservative bearded Salafis are flexing their muscles and the Islamist-led government is doing nothing to stop them.

It starts slowly, with little things like cultural events. Salafis destroyed art they believed to be offensive at an art exhibit/fair in June. And they're back targeting the arts again. This time it was the "un-Islamic" Bizerte music and theatre festival that was attacked by a bunch of Salafis bearing arms which left five people wounded. Four men were arrested, but people there said it took a good hour before the police did anything about the melee, and that the government isn't doing anything to control the Salafis thuggish behavior. And the attacks on culture have increased to the point that some producers are cancelling events.

Last week, the director of a festival at Gboullat, in the northern Beja region, announced he was cancelling the event under pressure notably from the Salafi -- adherents of a strict Sunni interpretation of Islam similar to the one practiced in Saudi Arabia.

Another festival had been cancelled at the end of July, in Sejnane, with the organizers again blaming radical Islamists, who interrupted the event, saying it was unacceptable during the month of Ramadan.

But the Bizert festival isn't the only event that has been targeted recently, in fact there have been a spate of attacks since the violent confrontation in June that left many wounded and one dead.

It was the third and most violent such incident in just three days, after Salafi prevented an Iranian group from performing at a Sufi music festival in Kairouan, south of Tunis, saying their Shiite chanting amounted to a violation of Islamic values.

On Tuesday, renowned Tunisian actor Lotfi Abdelli was prevented from performing his comedy act “100% Halal” by hardline Islamists who had occupied the auditorium.

The fact that the Salafis are allowed to wreak havoc and yet anti-government protests are quickly dealt with has some believing that the Ennahda are involved.

“They leave the Salafi alone,” said Tunisian actress and playwright Leila Toubel.

“How can we believe that this government and Ennahda are not involved? I would like to think that there is nothing to it, but these people (the Salafi) go unpunished, they make their own law,” Toubel said.

She accused the ruling Islamists of “complicity at least by silence.”

And some online media sites, like Kapitalis, feel the same way.

“What is serious about all this, more than the activism of these religious extremists, which grows by the day, is the laxity of the authorities who give in every time when faced with the diktats of some bearded fanatics."

Although the ministry of culture weighed in on the cancelled Abdelli show by saying it was an “attack on freedom of expression and a dangerous threat to cultural rights,” it's doubtful anything will be done; after all, an Islamist is an Islamist, whether they claim to be moderate or not.

It starts with the cultural events, and then eventually it will creep into other areas of life, until it is too late to do anything about it.

Florida Muslim Groups Want Police CT Trainer Fired For Maligning Islam

Florida law enforcement is now being targeted by a coalition of Muslim mosques, organizations and, naturally, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), for its anti-Muslim extremist training programme. Facilitated by Sam Kharoba (a Jordanian Christian) of Counter Terrorism Operations Center, he's been called out for "....inaccuracies, sweeping generalizations and stereotypes."

The Miami Herald reports that CAIR claims Kharoba's training classes have

.. maligned the Prophet Muhammad and promulgated mistruths about Islam.

"It's troubling, un-American and frankly, quite possibly illegal training," said Hassan Shibly of CAIR, which focused its criticisms squarely on one man, Sam Kharoba, who has led a variety of classes for police through his Counter Terrorism Operations Center. "It makes us less safe and less free."

Kharoba called the claims "manufactured distractions" and said his training "is based on historical facts found in the most respected and authentic Islamic religious texts."

"CTOC challenges these critics to a public debate to find any factual flaws with our training material," he wrote in an e-mail to The Associated Press.

Under a public records request, CAIR said it found Kharoba held at least 21 separate trainings for state law enforcement agencies since 2005, some of them sanctioned by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. They say he uses a training manual that says "Muhammad lived a diabolical life" and that Osama bin Laden "did not hijack or twist Islam."

According to CAIR Kharoba was quoted in Washington Monthly as saying:

"When I look at the life of Muhammad, I get a very nasty image ... I am talking about a pedophile, a serial killer, a rapist."

He did marry a 6-year-old and finally consummated the marriage when she was only 9. That's certainly not an inaccuracy.  Kharoba defended himself by claiming that the statements were taken out of context in order to

"slander law enforcement trainers." He says he makes clear that "not all Muslims are radical."

He also mentioned in a phone call with the Sun-Sentinel that,

"I have an in-depth knowledge of Islam to the extent that Muslims themselves are not able to debate me. I extend an invitation to any critics to debate me on any subject matter related to Islam and terrorism."

According to the complaint filed by the coalition, Kharoba's manual also states that Muhammad's initial Quranic revelations were

".. peaceful and tolerant but later became radical and militant."

That Osama Bin Laden was simply emulating Muhammad's violent path, and that

... Islam allows believers "to lie and purposely deceive" to serve the goal of "worldwide supremacy."

All true.  But it's not just CAIR and the rest of the coalition that isn't pleased with how law enforcement is being trained for counter-terrorism, several senators piped in on the issue this past March.

Last March, Sens. Joe Lieberman and Susan Collins wrote a letter to Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano and Attorney General Eric Holder, citing the Washington Monthly article.

"We are concerned with recent reports that state and local law enforcement agencies are being trained by individuals who not only do not understand the ideology of violent Islamic extremism but also cast aspersions on a wide swath of ordinary Americans merely because of their religious affiliation," they wrote.

New York City law enforcement came under attack in January, 2012 for showing the anti-Islamic extremism film The Third Jihad: Radical Islam's Vision for America.  The film premiered back in 2008, and I had the opportunity to see it; a very powerful documentary about the dangers of radical Islam in the U.S. .

CAIR et al wants Kharoba fired, but he says that over the past 10 years he has trained 20,000 law enforcement officers, including about 100 Muslims, none of whom complained. Spokesperson for FDLE, Gretly Plessinger, concurs. According to Plessinger, he has only "received positive feedback from those taking the course.  No complaints." But does plan on reviewing CAIR's concerns which includes retraining officers who took COTC training since 2005. Rather than deal with CAIR, I have no doubt he will be fired.

I have no doubts there are Westernized, secular, peace-loving Muslims who want to co-exist, I have even met some. But those who don't believe there's a major global problem with radical Islam, and that it exists in our own backyard are incredible fools.

Indonesian Atheist Jailed For "Inciting religious hatred"

The 30-year-old West Sumatran atheist Alexander Aan, who was beaten up and jailed for writing "God doesn't exist" and posting Mohammad cartoons on his Facebook group page Ateis Minang, and was facing  a maximum of 5 years in jail, has finally been been sentenced.

Presiding judge Eka Prasetya Budi Dharma found Aan guilty of

“..deliberately spreading information inciting religious hatred and animosity."

“What he did has caused anxiety to the community and tarnished Islam.”

“Under the Electronic Information and Transactions law, we sentence him to prison for a length of two years and six months."

Initially, he was also charged with two other 'crimes'-  blasphemy and "persuading others to embrace atheism"- which could have netted him those 5 years. However, those charges were dropped, and prosecutors didn't get the 3 1/2 years they wanted.

Ironically, although not surprising, those who have attacked (and sometimes killed) Christians and Ahmadis (Muslim minority sect) have received far lighter sentences than Aan.

As I mentioned in my other post, Indonesia's freedom of religion is bogus.  These people need to get a life.

Salafists Destroy "Offensive" Art Work In Tunisia

Divine Creatures- offensive to Islamists in Tunisia

Instead of just ignoring something one might find offensive, the boorish, uncivilized Islamists want it outright banned or destroyed. And of course, their idea of offensive is often offensive in and of itself. An art exhibition/fair- The Printemps des Art Fair- in La Marsa, Tunisia was the latest target of their fanatical extremism. According to Luca Luccatini, the exhibit's director, four works in the exhibition were deemed "offensive to sacred values" by some Salafist oafs (two men, a woman in niqab and a lawyer) who showed up at the venue on Sunday and demanded they be removed.

When that didn't work someone broke into the gallery some time between Sunday night and Monday morning and destroyed some of the art works including some paintings (which they slashed) and an art installation which was removed and burned outdoors. A photograph was also apparently destroyed.

Luccatini had called the police after the first "aggressive" encounter- which included threats of returning-but that obviously was of no help, since they did, both to protest later that evening and then to destroy the work later on.

One of the 'offending' pieces was an art installation called "The Punching Ball" by Faten Gaddes. It's two punching bags, used in boxing, with a photo of a veiled woman and inscribed beneath the picture "I am a Christian woman." An obvious indictment against religious persecution. The abstract artwork above- "Divine Creatures"- was also found to be offensive, though no-one seems to know why. It's certainly not very appealing, but other than that, who knows. More than likely it was the title that they took umbrage with, since nothing is divine other than Mohammed and Allah. Or maybe it's the naked woman hidden amidst the mishmash of creatures.

A detailed account of the sequence of events can be found  in English on Tunisia Live here, and here. In French here.

After the initial encounter and before the vandalism occurred, the exhibit coordinators were able to galvanize fellow artists to counter Islamists who showed up in protest, and not surprisingly angry words were exchanged. And there has been criticism from both camps complaining about the other side's provocation. One Salafist, Mohamed Karim,  complained  about not being allowed to view the whole exhibition.

“I wanted to come to see for myself what was happening. I only saw a few pictures. They [supporters of the event] spoke a lot and I didn’t have a chance to see the other ateliers. They tried to provoke me, thank goodness I didn’t react."

And why should they let him? More importantly, why would he even want to view something he knows he would be offended by?!

Surprisingly, some feel the artists over-reacted, including a photographer who was at the event. Wijaya Mahouichi said,

“They are treating people unfairly. They are provoking people in front of the cameras.”

Well, I would too if it was my work or the work of my friends and people were threatening to destroy it.

Besides the destruction of art work, graffitti was found on the Abdallia Palace walls (where the event took place).

Freshly written messages in Arabic could be read including “Let God Be the Judge”, “Tunisia is an Islamic State, with the license of the Ministry of Culture, the Prophet of Allah gets insulted,” and “Hey you infidels, Ennahda, Tahryr and Salafist are brothers.”

Complaints have been filed, but no-one believes anything will happen since even the Culture Ministry, though claiming to support "freedom of creation", condemned some of the work as “all kinds of aggression against sacred values”. But what can one expect from an Islamist-led government.

To view some of the works, someone posted a video on a Facebook page. The video has the words  “Tomorrow all followers of Islam should rise in anger to defend Islam.”  There is also a list of all the artists that participated in the exhibit and photos of some of the supporters. Looks like some of the pieces might have hit a little too close to home, and those people will probably need to watch their backs.

As an artist and photographer the thought of anyone's work being destroyed infuriates me. No-one has the right to destroy another person's creative work. How dare they!

Bottom line, if you find something offensive turn the channel, turn the page or move on to the next painting. No-one is holding a gun to anyone’s head forcing them to view something they deem unsavory.

And they wonder why the West balks.

Turkish Atheist Pianist Faces Jail Time For Insulting Islam

It's not surprising when Muslims become atheists, and there's definitely a multitude of them. Not the route I would take, since I firmly believe in God, but I can certainly understand why they might turn their backs on Allah and their religion in its current incarnation. But atheists in Muslim countries are as persecuted as any other non-Muslim minority, and as liable as any other 'infidel' of being prosecuted for "explicitly insulting Islam.

And since the once secular Turkey has gradually become more like its Islamist-leaning cousins elsewhere in the Middle East, people over there now need to be very careful what they say about Islam- or they could wind up like 42-year-old Fazil Say. Say is a famous, world renowned Turkish classical pianist- who also happens to be an avowed atheist- who is facing an 18-month jail term for insulting "Muslim religious values."  Apparently Say (who has performed with orchestras all over the world) uses Twitter, and religious conservatives took offense to some quotes from a poem by Omar Khayyam (11th Century Persian poet of  "Rubaiyat" fame) that he posted.

“You say rivers of wine flow in heaven, is heaven a tavern to you? You say two hours await each believer there, is heaven a brothel to you?”

He also made fun of a muazzin:

someone who makes the Muslim call to prayer.

“The muazzin finished the evening prayers in 22 seconds ... Why are you in such hurry? A lover? A raki table?” he asked, referring to the aniseed-flavored spirit popular in Turkey.

His trial is set to commence on October 17 in Istanbul, and according to his attorney, Meltem Akyol, Say will be attending.

In the meantime he is contemplating getting the heck out of dodge.

The multiple award-winning artist said in April in an interview with the Hurriyet daily that he felt completely ostracized by Turkish society since he declared that he was an atheist and that the criticism he had received had highlighted a growing culture of intolerance.

“I think it’s time for me to move to Japan,” Say told the daily.

“When I said that I was an atheist, everyone insulted me and the legal authorities jumped on everything that I wrote on Twitter. I am perhaps the first person anywhere in the world to be the object of a judicial inquiry for declaring that they are an atheist.”

Ironically, Al Arabiya mentions that conservative Islamist Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan was jailed in 1998,

...for reciting a poem that a court ruled was an incitement to religious hatred.

Erdogan, the then mayor of Istanbul, had belonged to an Islamist party that had been banned after the military forced its leader to resign as prime minister a year earlier. He served six months in jail. The poem he had read contained the verses;“The mosques are our barracks, the domes our helmets, the minarets our bayonets and the faithful our soldiers.”

You'd think Erdogan would be more understanding, then again, maybe it's his payback time. Besides, Islamists have little to no tolerance or understanding of anything other than their own ultra rigid beliefs.

Egyptian Vice Police Arrest Belly Dancing TV Station Owner For Facilitating

When I think of Egypt I think of the Pyramids, the Nile and belly dancing. Belly dancing is a traditional, popular dance form that dates back to ancient Egypt, but it's becoming less so as the country spirals downward towards a far more conservative and less tolerant Islam.  Once an enjoyment for all, it has only been accessible (and legal) in high-end hotels and clubs. Then about a year ago Baligh Hamdy started ElTet, a satellite TV station that exclusively broadcast belly dancing for the masses, at least those with access to satellite TV. Apparently Hamdy produced the videos himself, filming the dancers in their colorful skimpy outfits undulating to live music, and would then send the files to partners in Jordan and Bahrain, They would then air those videos on the satellite TV station.  People could tune in 24/7 to watch, until some viewers filed a complaint, and now Hamdy finds himself sitting in jail facing charges on suspicion of "facilitating prostitution", "harming public decency", "inciting licentiousness" and "operating without a license". 

Facilitating prostitution?  Belly dancers are now considered prostitutes? 
Hamdy was arrested by vice police in his flat in Cairo, which subbed as his studio, and now awaits his fate.

What might have gotten Hamdy in trouble, more so than the dancing itself, were the sexual enhancement and "matchmaking" ads he was airing during the broadcasts. Whether they were your typical match.com-type ads or the "voulez-vous couchez avec moi" escort-type ads, no-one is saying. I can't even imagine how they would deal with the plethora of 'little blue pill' ads that air during dinner time on U.S. networks.  Not that I approve of those ads while young ones are eating their spaghettiOs.

But there are those in Egypt who are dreading what the Islamists in leadership will bring to the table, in terms of censorship. If it's this bad now, I can't begin to imagine what will happen in a few years.
Sources: al Arabiya,WCSC,

7 Years In Jail For Blasphemy For Two Tunisian Men

 Since the Arab Spring, and the resulting rise of Islamism in the region, there seem to be more cases of jail time for 'blasphemers'.

Yesterday, a young Egyptian Christian teen was sentenced to three years in prison for mocking Islam on his Facebook page.  Now we hear of two Tunisians,  Ghazi Beji and Jabeur Mejri (both late twenties) who were fined approximately $800.00 each and sentenced at the end of March to seven years in jail.  According to the justice ministry spokesperson Chokri Nefti,

“They were sentenced, one of them in absentia, to seven years in prison, for transgressing morality, defamation and disrupting public order.”

Disrupting public order?

What's most troubling is that Mejri  and Beji (an atheist), like the young Egyptian, had posted their 'blaspehmous content'  on social networking sites. 

Beji wrote a book called “the Illusion of Islam”, discussing his views about Islam and religion. Mejri, also wrote a book. “Dark Land”, where he “cursed the government, Islamists, and expressed his hatred towards Arabs.“

Beji, a biotech food engineer, lucked out and fled to Greece, seeking asylum. When interviewed by Tunisia Live, Beji said,

  “After the Revolution, in March 2011, I said to myself Tunisia is a free and democratic country now and I should try to publish my book. I contacted several book publishers in Mahdia but they all refused to publish it. So I opted to upload it online.”

Not sure why he thought that a country that is now predominantly Islamist would not take offense to his writings, but I suppose hope springs eternal.  Not so, unfortunately, when you are dealing with religious fanatics. But it is interesting to note how many ex-Muslims there are who are atheists.  Plenty of them on Facebook.

On the other hand, Mejri, who is an English teacher, wasn't so lucky and is currently in police custody waiting to serve his seven years.

Human Rights Watch in Tunisia made their obligatory statement- that the sentencing was  “an attack on freedom of expression and freedom of belief.”   Not that any of the officials would care what HRW has to say about 'freedom', since there is no freedom of expression or belief in non-secular Muslim majority countries.

Islamist University Students In Egypt Shut Down TV Production Because Of "Indecent" Attire

Islamist college students were actually able to shut down production on a TV series based on a novel about student union activism in Egypt in the early 1970s!  The novel "Zat" was written by Sonallah Ibrahim and

 focuses on the sit-in staged by Faculty of Engineering students in 1972 and the demonstrations they led in Tahrir Square.

Why were  students at Aim Shams University in Cairo so outraged?  They took offense to the "indecent" tight costumes the actresses were wearing. Of course, it didn't matter to them that this was simply a representation of the times.  And even though the production company had a 6 month permit to shoot on campus, the dean of of the Faculty of Engineering told the director Kamla Abu Zikri that they had to leave.

No-one involved with the production is happy about what they call a major violation of  'freedom of expression'.

Gabi Khouri, the producer has called out the university for pandering to the Islamist students. He said,

“By being passive towards the students’ action even though we were granted permission to shoot, the university is contributing to this clampdown on art and this kind of thuggery that has been prevalent since the revolution."

Apparently, Egypt recently created  an organization- the Egyptian Creativity Front-

which aims at protecting the rights of artists and freedom on artistic expression, as well as all art-related syndicates.

The production company has appealed to the ECF to ensure that this kind of situation is not duplicated, but in the meantime, they are scouting new locations.

The university was wrong to allow a few rabble-rousers to dictate how they run their establishment. Appeasing the Islamists will only serve to empower them.

Brussells University Debate Heckled By Muslim Fundamentalists

There is no civil discourse when it comes to Islamic fundamentalists. They allow no room for debate, no freedom of speech, and civility is a word that does not seem to exist in their lexicon. We often witness their uncivilized behaviour at University lectures and debates.  Back in 2010, on the UC Irvine Campus, Muslim students heckled a lecture on American/Israeli relations given by Israel's Ambassador to the U.S. Michael B Oren.  The video shows just how disrespectful the students were.

This time their boorish behaviour was captured on tape at a Brussels University (ULB) where French journalist Caroline Fourest (a secularist) was set to debate Hervé Hasquin on the subject: "Has the extreme right become socially acceptable or not?" Fourest, a feminist, anti-racist, anti-Islamic Totalitarianism  received death threats (along with 11 others) in 2006 for signing: Manifesto: Together Facing the New Totalitarianism, a response to the violence that erupted after the Danish Jyllands-Posten Mohammed Cartoons. 

The debate had yet to begin when some rabble-rousers (including some niqab-clad women) started heckling the participants accusing Fourest of Islamophobia.  At about 4:36 on the video below, they start getting rowdy and chanting "Burqa!!"  bla-bla.

At one point, after being goaded by the debate moderator Guy Haarscher into coming on stage to speak, the instigator of the protest, Souhail Chichah, an assistant and researcher in economics at the university, grabbed a veil and continued his harangue.  Apparently, Chichah (who is said to have extremist views) had for several days been calling for "Burqa Pride" on various social networks, and was devoted to the "stoning of Caroline Fourest".

Fourest finally left, escorted by security, saying she would never return.

University officials were so outraged by this clear violation of freedom of expression, that the rector has called for a disciplinary board to look into what actions should be taken against Chichah.

He should be fired.

 


H/T Islam In Europe

Iran Now Bans Homer Simpson Dolls

Doh! Those wacky Iranians are at it again. Last month Barbie Dolls were banned and therefore deemed haram (forbidden). This month, it's Homer Simpson and his gang. The dolls, that is.

The Institute for the Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults, (yes, there's actually a governmental agency for this) banned the Homer Simpson dolls because owning them promotes Western culture, and we know how odious Western culture is in the eyes of the mullahs.  Apparently Spiderman and Superman are cool, because they happen to be heroes, and “They help oppressed people and they have a positive stance.”  At least according to Mohammad Hossein Farjoo, secretary of the above agency.

Okay.

Farjoo said of Homer Simpson:

“We do not want to promote this cartoon by importing the toys.” 

He did not elaborate on what was wrong with the Simpsons specifically. But he noted that any doll on which genitals are distinguishable, as well as dolls of adults, are banned. So were toys with speakers that blare out the voices of Western singers, or toy kitchen sets that include glasses for drinking alcoholic beverages.

Dolls of adults? Why?

Last month, they wound up shuttering a bunch of shops for selling Barbies illegally. I'm sure another slew are headed for closure.

Salman Rushdie Bashes Indian Government For Not Protecting Free Speech At Literary Fest

It's been almost 23 years since Sir Salman Rushdie had a death fatwa placed on his head by then Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini. On February 14 1989, Khomeini issued the following:

"We are from Allah and to Allah we shall return." (Qoranic verse). I am informing all brave Muslims of the world that the author of The Satanic Verses, a text written, edited, and published against Islam, the Prophet of Islam, and the Koran, along with all the editors and publishers aware of its contents, are condemned to death. I call on all valiant Muslims wherever they may be in the world to kill them without delay, so that no one will dare insult the sacred beliefs of Muslims henceforth. And whoever is killed in this cause will be a martyr, Allah Willing. Meanwhile if someone has access to the author of the book but is incapable of carrying out the execution, he should inform the people so that [Rushdie] is punished for his actions.

Less then a month later that fatwa was the catalyst for the breakdown of diplomatic relations between Britain and Iran.  It wasn't until 1998- in order to reestablish relations with the U.K.- that then President Mohammad Khatami had to make a statement claiming Iran would "neither support nor hinder assassination operations on Rushdie."  However, in 2005 they backtracked and the current Ayatollah Ali Khamenei declared it was still cool to kill Rushdie for writing his 'blasphemous' novel "The Satanic Verses".  Banned in all but one Muslim-majority country (Turkey), it was also banned in several other nations including Venezuela and Rushdie's birthplace India.  It is no longer banned in Egypt and Libya, but still banned in India.

But what's most astonishing (or maybe not) is that after all these years people are still taking that fatwa to heart.   Rushdie was scheduled to speak at the Jaipur Literary Festival in India this week, but had to cancel because of assassination threats, and threats of violence.  Even a video-linked appearance was cancelled, although Rushdie has "doubts about the accuracy" of the intelligence sources that warned of  "paid assassins from the Mumbai underworld may be on their way to Jaipur to "eliminate" him.  Rusdhie believes the Indian government is kowtowing to Muslim extremists, and bashed officials for being more concerned about Muslim votes in upcoming elections than protecting free speech. He was also highly critical of

"Muslim groups that were so unscrupulous, and whose idea of free speech is that they are the only ones entitled to it". "[If] Anyone else, who they disagree with, wishes to open his mouth, they will try and stop that mouth. That's what we call tyranny. It's much worse than censorship because it comes with the threat of violence."

Rushdie has never been harmed but others affiliated with the work were not so lucky a publishers in Norway and Italy were shot and knifed respectively, and a Japanese translator was killed.

Sadly, Muslim extremists have long memories, great patience and unforgiving hearts.

Sources: DailyMailUK, GuardianUK, TelegraphUK

Bye Bye Barbie and Ken- Iran Cracks Down On Sale of Un-Islamic Barbie Dolls

Barbie dolls have been banned in Iran since 1996, not because oftheir unrealistic, anorexic, cinch-waisted, long-legged, blond-headed perfection but because they represent Western culture in all its hated glory.

But that fatwa hasn't stopped shop owners from selling those evil dolls in their stores. The mullahs might find Barbie and Ken dolls distasteful, but the average Iranian is just as taken with the cultural icons as people in the West. But the Iranian Jane-Q might have a harder time finding Barbie as a result of a recent crackdown by the Iranian morality police.

Iran’s morality police are cracking down on the sale of Barbie dolls to protect the public from what they see as pernicious western culture eroding Islamic values, shopkeepers said on Monday.

As the West imposes the toughest ever sanctions on Iran and tensions rise over its nuclear program, inside the country the Barbie ban is part of what the government calls a “soft war” against decadent cultural influences.

“About three weeks ago the morality police came to our shop, asking us to remove all the Barbies,” said a shopkeeper in a toy store in northern Tehran.

As a replacement for the un-Islamic Barbie and Ken, the Iranian government in 2002 approved of Sara and Dara: plump, modestly and traditionally dressed female and male dolls that were deemed kosher for Iranian consumption. 

But that hasn't quite work out as planned, because people still want their Barbies.

“My daughter prefers Barbies. She says Sara and Dara are ugly and fat,” said Farnaz, a 38-year-old mother, adding that she could not find Barbie cartoon DVDs because she was told they were also banned from public sale.

Though they were openly sold in shops in spite of the ban, the Iranian government's latest Barbie clampdown has the shop owners scuttling to hide those harbingers of Western cultural decadence behind Iranian-sanctioned toys.

Pointing to a doll covered in black long veil, a 40-year-old Tehran toy shop manager said: “We still sell Barbies, but secretly and put these in the window to make the police think we are just selling these kinds of dolls.”

I wonder if Barbie wore a veil would she be state-approved? 

Oh, and remember that U.S. spy drone that Iran claims it allegedly shot down, although there is debate as to whether it actually crash landed?  Replicas available in a slew of different colors will be available in toy stores soon.

Richard Landes On Charlie Hebdo and Freedom Of Speech

Richard Landes, an American professor, writer and historian, has written an excellent response  to Bruce Crumley's commentary (on Time's website) regarding the Charlie Hebdo firebombing incident.

Crumley, is your typical apologist/appeaser who believes anyone critical of Islam is 'Islamphobic', and wants that criticism to stop:

Okay, so can we finally stop with the idiotic, divisive, and destructive efforts by “majority sections” of Western nations to bait Muslim members with petulant, futile demonstrations that “they” aren't going to tell “us” what can and can't be done in free societies? Because not only are such Islamophobic antics futile and childish, but they also openly beg for the very violent responses from extremists their authors claim to proudly defy in the name of common good. What common good is served by creating more division and anger, and by tempting belligerent reaction?

Landes, on the other hand, believes  Muslims should just "grow up". Although he does agree "in principle" with Crumley's objection to "gratuitous insult", he does not believe the criticism should stop.

Gratuitous insult is not what we need. Much better purposeful, serious criticism. If Crumley really embodied the maturity he pretends to, then he’d have serious challenges to Islam to his credit. That would attest to his readiness to treat Muslims as adults, capable of listening to as well as proffering criticism, to his faith that “the vast majority of Muslims are moderates.”

But if he is primarily trying to spare Muslims’ feelings – if he secretly believes that they are incapable of playing by the minimal rules of civil society; that they are not far from sympathising with jihadis for whom violence is a legitimate response to any form of criticism of Islam – then he unconsciously reveals that he thinks Muslims are primitive, violent people who must be appeased at all costs.

Here’s where Crumley and I part ways: he treats Muslims as animals or little children, and believes that he can win them over with carrots. Sticks will just spook them. So he finds Charlie Hebdo’s behavior “childish, futile, Islamophobic [sic!]… inflammatory… obnoxious, infantile… outrageous, unacceptable, condemnable.”

[snip]
I’d rather treat Charlie Hebdo as a teaching moment, as a shibboleth for detecting genuinely moderate Muslims. Here’s an occasion to teach our Muslim co-citizens about “sticks and stones.” If we can’t find Muslims to whom we can say: “this part of modern civil society, and your learning to get past the implied/imagined insult constitutes minimal adherence to principles of reciprocity,” then what does it mean to carry on about “moderate Muslims”? This reciprocity is especially significant given how virulently critical of infidels many of the most vocal Muslims are.

This radical (and pre-modern) asymmetry of “us” and “them” reflects one of the most disturbing – and to liberals, incomprehensible – principle of Wala wa bara - “loyalty to Muslims and enmity for infidels.” It constitutes the exact opposite of the modern principles that underlie civil polities in which citizens are guaranteed “human rights.”

Landes is spot on in his analyses, and it's worth a read. Click here for the whole article.

"My Tehran For Sale" Actress To Be Jailed And Lashed

What happens to an actress In Iran if the ruling mullahs and other religious conservatives dislike a film you were involved with: you get flogged and jailed, of course.

Marzieh Vafamehr, Iranian actress and wife of screenwriter and director Nasser Taghvai, was sentenced to a year in jail and 90 lashes for a film she starred in entitled "My Tehran For Sale". 

An Iranian/Australian co-production, apparently it tells the story of a young woman, also named Marzieh, who lives in Tehran under the current regime. Also an actress (and mime), she is banned from her theatre work by Iranian officials, which forces her to live a double life in order to nurture her artistic needs.  The film explores just what that secret life means in urban Tehran, something that many Iranian youth are forced to do these days.

Life imitating art and vice versa.

However, one does have to remember that this is what the Iranians wanted back in the late 1970s. 

All I have to say is: Be careful what you wish for!!

Source: TelegraphUK

Egyptian Tycoon Receives Boycotts, Lawsuits & Threats Of Severed Tongue For Posting Mickey and Minnie Mouse in Islamic Garb

Disney's Mickey Mouse has taken center stage, yet again, in the Middle East.  But this time, rather than being a tool for teaching terrorism to kids- remember Farfour the Palestinian Mouse-  he and his gal pal Minnie created a firestorm of protest against Egyptian Telecom and media tycoon-cum-politician, Naguib Sawiris.  Sawiris has had lawsuits and boycotts launched against him for posting a cartoon of Mickey with an Islamic beard and a niqab-clad Minnie from his Twitter feed. Apparently, the cartoon had already made the rounds in an email that featured the mouse couple and the quote: "this is the future of Egypt"- which is more than likely where the country is headed, given the overreaction to the post.  It probably doesn't help that after the fall of Mubarak, Sawiris formed a political party- Free Egyptians-  determined to create a secular Egypt and is a Christian Copt, to boot. As an 'infidel', he justifiably (in the minds of the Salafis who are at the bottom of all the protests) deserves all the obligatory death threats etc. that are being leveled at him, in spite of having apologized on Twitter:

 "I apologise for any who don't take this as a joke, I just thought it was a funny picture no disrespect meant! Assef!! ". [sorry]

According to various news sources, Facebook pages materialized calling for a boycott of  Sawiris' cell phone company, with one group accruing over  60,000 followers.  Although I was unable to track it down, the "We are  joking Sawiris" group supposedly had the following posted on its page:

 "If you are really a Muslim, and you love your religion, boycott his projects. We have to cut out the tongue of any person who attacks our religion."

It's quite obvious conservative Muslims lack a sense of humour. Time and again they demonstrate a serious inability to find the grace and humour in life, which is perhaps why they so often resort to violence. If they lightened up a bit, life would be  much more pleasant- and peaceful-  for the rest of the world. But no, they  consistently choose to be offended by even the most innocuous of things. Like a veiled Minnie and bearded Mickey.

Sources: ArabTimes , TelegraphUK,
photo from The Blaze