Free Speech
This is why I love the internets. Hypocrisy is so easy to find. For the record, I think censorship is too blunt a tool to be effective in dealing with disagreeable ideas. Technorati Tags: free speech
Category: Current Affairs
I agree with McCain [updated]
Read this article at TPM for context. I agree on the conclusion, but probably not the process. Most Muslims hate AQ. They stand in opposition to the way most of live. In fact, their very raison d’être is to stand in opposition to the way most Muslims live. As I ask constantly, what is AQ’s positive agenda other than to live the way their master OBL wants them to? I need to do a longer post on why they’ve had such success. In any event, I’m not convinced a grand coalition between Shi’ah and Sunni will now arise to fight…
Islam Unites UK
In hatred. Not so bad really. Just the usual amount of misinformation to make us sound more violent than the average religious group. I can see CNN’s treatment of this now “Violent Center Funded by London, Jihad U.” Technorati Tags: UK
Guantanamo Lawyer Harassed
Allegedly. Details here. A question for lawyers in general. Assume a lawyer wasn’t coming from Gitmo on a military plane, where he is clearly a target for investigation. If a lawyer were coming to the US from Canada and had client files, is the Customs Dept. violating confidentiality by going through those files? What if I, as a teacher, had student files on me that are meant to be confidential (strictly entering the US)? Technorati Tags: Guantanamo, war on terror[ism][ists]
Is the US in an abusive relationship?
Are we getting beaten up by our companion Saudi Arabia and making excuses for them? Because it sure seems that we are. Almost 1/2 of all foreign fighters in Iraq are from our friend and ally Saudi Arabia. I’m sorry, what?!? Look, people, we’ve had multiple rationale’s for getting involved in Iraq, starting with the search for WMD (which weren’t there, but even if they were, they were bought by the US and Saudi Arabia to stop the Shi’ah incursion from Iran) to spreading democracy and keeping the virulent ideology of Islamic extremists at bay. So as I understand it…
Reading a Video
Ali Eteraz has a highly speculative piece up on the latest OBL video. I’m actually with him until he gets to the Bollywood part. I hope that there are professionals watching these videos and trying to figure out next moves, but even in the popular media and quick deconstruction like this would take a lot of air from AQ’s mission. Imagine instead of the headline “OBL loves him some martyrs, run for your lives,” we got headlines like “Latest OBL video give further proof that he’s dead, AQ clueless.” Of course, the second headline shouldn’t be read to minimize the…
Bringing Iraq Home
As TPM notes, it seems like the London bombings were based on ideas developed in Iraq. As we’ve seen, it doesn’t match up exactly because the devices were crude with little chance of causing mass casualties had they gone off, thankfully they didn’t. Here’s my question, why did Afghanistan stay local? Why did the mujahidin stay in Afghanistan and not export themselves to the Soviet Union? Or, to put it another way, why is Iraq flowing past its borders? Is this simply Al-Qaeda ideology? Strike at the infidel? It just seems so ineffective if you want freedom for you Muslim…
Brown People, no more pressure
As many of you have now heard, there were attempted bombings in London and Glasgow Airport. BBC round-up. In case we needed further proof that terrorists are idiots, these guys are doctors who apparently don’t know basic chemistry or physics, so the whole thing failed, thankfully. What have learned from this experience: Doctors are not necessarily smart people. Terrorists are stupid. Doctors who are terrorists are definitely not smart people. For brown children everywhere who are pressured into being doctors, you can now tell your parents with a straight face, doctors are stupid and people fear them. No prestige, no…
New Sanctuary Movement – Press Release
I wonder how many Muslim groups are participating. This is good. If we are Children of Adam, we need to help each other.
Canada’s No-Fly List: Too Guilty to Fly, Too Innocent to Charge?
Interesting read from Canadia. Perhaps they’re not as enlightened as I thought. Technorati Tags: Canada, no-fly list, war on terror[ism][ists]