All entries by this author

Praveen Swami on Salman Rushdie and India’s new theocracy *

Jan 21st, 2012 | Filed by

Rushdie’s censoring-out from the ongoing literary festival in Jaipur will be remembered as a milestone that marked the slow motion disintegration of India’s secular state.… Read the rest

Posted in Latest News


My Visit to Australia

Jan 20th, 2012 | By Leo Igwe

From August 17 to September 5 2011, I visited Australia. I was invited by the the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) and the Australian Skeptics to deliver the Canberra Lecture and to do a speaking tour of the country. It was my first visit to the country and continent. Late in 2010, I was contacted by Kevin Davies to know if I could visit Australia and deliver a lecture as part of events marking the National Science Week. I readily accepted.

What started as an invitation to deliver a lecture gradually ‘evolved’ to become a grand tour that would take me to all states in Australia. It was only the Northern Territory that has Darwin as its capital … Read the rest

Posted in Articles


Guardian on Rushdie not in Jaipur *

Jan 20th, 2012 | Filed by

A cleric’s description of Rushdie as having “hurt the sentiments of Muslims all over the world” was widely reported in India, and prompted calls for Rushdie to be denied a visa.

 … Read the rest

Posted in Latest News


Nigerian reporter murdered while covering bombings *

Jan 20th, 2012 | Filed by

Enenche Akogwu, 31, was shot by unidentified gunmen as he attempted to interview witnesses of a deadly terrorist attack in Kano.… Read the rest

Posted in Latest News


Mr Rushdie regrets

Jan 20th, 2012 1:41 pm | By

More on Rushdie not in Jaipur.

Times of India:

Two prominent authors on Friday read out portions from Salman Rushdie’s banned book “Satanic Verses” at the Jaipur Literature Festival as a mark of protest after the India-born author had to pull out of the event over security concerns.

As the literary community expressed outrage over Rushdie not being able to make the trip, Hari Kunzru and Amitava Kumar used their session at the festival to read from “Satanic Verses”. The controversial book was banned in the country shortly after it was published in 1988, for allegedly hurting the sentiments of Muslims.

Love those guys.

The organizers later asked Kumar not to go ahead with his reading. Kumar initially agreed

… Read the rest

(This is a syndicated post. Read the original at FreeThoughtBlogs.)

Posted in Notes and Comment Blog
Tags: ,


No longer a “safe space”

Jan 20th, 2012 11:52 am | By

Alex Gabriel reports another front in the battle against “Islamophobia” (meaning, in the battle against any and all criticism or mockery of Islam). This time it’s LSE’s Student Union hassling LSE’s student atheist society. It has to do with the atheist society’s Facebook page not being a “safe space” for Muslim students.

What?

Well don’t look at me, it’s not my idea. It’s what they were told:

Here’s part of the e-mail I got today from the society, who’ve just met with their union to discuss the issues:

Essentially, a large of group of Muslim students felt offended that there were pictures of Mohammed on the facebook group. As a result, they felt that our facebook group was no

… Read the rest

(This is a syndicated post. Read the original at FreeThoughtBlogs.)

Posted in Notes and Comment Blog
Tags: ,


These crimes happen everywhere in the world

Jan 20th, 2012 10:26 am | By

Speaking of “Islamophobia,” as we were, we can always count on the Guardian for lashings of Islamophilia. David Shariatmadari tells us the University of East Anglia is going to set everyone straight on women, Islam, and the media. I bet you can figure out what’s coming.

Women, Islam and the media are topics often found in close conjunction, and not always in the happiest of circumstances. So in a canny move, the University of East Anglia (UEA), which often gives better-known institutions a run for their money in terms of column inches, has developed a course entitled exactly that.

The 12-week module, which the university claims is the first of its kind in the UK, will cover the

… Read the rest

(This is a syndicated post. Read the original at FreeThoughtBlogs.)

Posted in Notes and Comment Blog
Tags: ,


Malawi: women assaulted and stripped for wearing trousers *

Jan 20th, 2012 | Filed by

Hundreds of people have protested in Blantyre including Vice-President Joyce Banda, the gender minister, several MPs, church leaders, university lecturers and activists.… Read the rest

Posted in Latest News


Atheism is illegal in Indonesia *

Jan 20th, 2012 | Filed by

An Indonesian man who said that God did not exist in a posting on a Facebook page for atheists was attacked by a mob, could face jail and loss of his job.… Read the rest

Posted in Latest News


Muscle v truth and humour

Jan 20th, 2012 8:42 am | By

Salman Rushdie stayed away from the Jaipur Literary Festival because of threats. So, defying the organizers of the festival, Hari Kunzru and Amitava Kumar read from The Satanic Verses, then Jeet Thayil and Ruchir Joshi joined them.

And then what happened? According to Stephanie Nolen, South Asia correspondent for the Globe and Mail, who is at the festival and tweeting from and about it, the four writers are being investigated by the police. Since she tweeted that from the festival, it must mean that the cops were “investigating” the writers up close and personal, right then and there.

I get all this via the invaluable Salil Tripathi (#FF!), who said at Facebook about an hour ago:

Stephanie Nolen

… Read the rest

(This is a syndicated post. Read the original at FreeThoughtBlogs.)

Posted in Notes and Comment Blog
Tags: , ,


London: “blasphemy” event January 28 *

Jan 20th, 2012 | Filed by

Kenan Malik, Austin Dacey, Andrew Copson, Jacob Mchangma, Maryam Namazie speaking informatively and provocatively on this controversial topic.… Read the rest

Posted in Latest News


Rushdie’s absence from Jaipur festival “a stain on India” *

Jan 20th, 2012 | Filed by

Rushdie’s staying away from Jaipur sets a dreadful precedent for its artists who are deemed by religious groups to be producing “blasphemous” material.… Read the rest

Posted in Latest News


For God so loved the 1% *

Jan 19th, 2012 | Filed by

Complaints about economic inequality are inconsistent with the concept of “one nation under God,” but only because the “1%” of an earlier era intended it that way.… Read the rest

Posted in Latest News


Muslim feminists targeted by Islamists *

Jan 19th, 2012 | Filed by

They face a backlash in the form of persecution, intimidation and death threats.… Read the rest

Posted in Latest News


Are you now or have you ever been an Islamophobe

Jan 19th, 2012 4:15 pm | By

The UCL Atheist, Secularist and Humanist Society put out a statement today. They’re tired of the whole thing and don’t want to talk about it any more.

What makes a student society is the ability to be open, foster community and – most importantly – encourage critical debate. The principal objective of our Society is to maintain a sceptical view on everything, be it astrology, numerology or theism. I am personally a strong believer of freedom of speech and I believe that it is a vitally important freedom to maintain. Freedom of speech guarantees the space for intellectual discourse, and in that space, people should be able to say what they want, without being afraid of censorship on the grounds

… Read the rest

(This is a syndicated post. Read the original at FreeThoughtBlogs.)

Posted in Notes and Comment Blog
Tags: , ,


More from the bully boyz

Jan 19th, 2012 11:51 am | By

And then we drop in on the Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association UK – which is actually not a “youth association” at all because it addresses members as “Brothers,” so clearly it’s only for male youth. Anyway we drop in on it and find its views on how to get more deference and obedience from people who don’t share its religious commitments.

You should all now be aware that we have been running a campaign over the past week in response to the decision take by Atheist Society of UCL to post a cartoon depicting the Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw) and the Holy Prophet Jesus (as) having a beer (God forbid) at a pub frequented by some of the UCL

… Read the rest

(This is a syndicated post. Read the original at FreeThoughtBlogs.)

Posted in Notes and Comment Blog
Tags: , ,


London 11 February 2012 – defend free expression

Jan 19th, 2012 11:02 am | By

Maryam says HOLD THE DATE:

One Law for All is calling for a rally in defence of free expression and the right to criticise religion on 11 February 2012 in central London from 2-4pm.

We are also calling for simultaneous events and acts in defence of free expression on 11 February in countries world-wide.

The call follows an increased number of attacks on free expression in the UK, including a 17 year old being forced to remove a Jesus and Mo cartoon or face expulsion from his Sixth Form College and demands by the UCL Union that the Atheist society remove a Jesus and Mo cartoon from its Facebook page. It also follows threats of violence, police being called, … Read the rest

(This is a syndicated post. Read the original at FreeThoughtBlogs.)

Posted in Notes and Comment Blog
Tags:


Cranston florists refuse to deliver roses to Jessica Ahlquist *

Jan 19th, 2012 | Filed by

That’s telling her!… Read the rest

Posted in Latest News


Quackometer on Burzynski in court *

Jan 19th, 2012 | Filed by

According to the Courthouse News Service, an elderly cancer patient is suing Burzynski for allegedly “bilking her of nearly $100,000″.… Read the rest

Posted in Latest News


History has told us that these things cause offence

Jan 19th, 2012 9:56 am | By

The president of UCL’s Atheist, Secularist and Humanist society, Robbie Yellon, has stepped down to be replaced by former vice president Michael Thor. Yellon quit because of all this mishegas about the Jesus and Mo image.

“Robbie stepped aside because he signed up as president to organise events and run a student society,” said Michael Paynter, secretary for the National Federation of Atheist, Humanist and Secular Student Societies.

“He did not appreciate the stress he would be under when dealing with a controversy like this, so he wanted to make way for someone else.”

A small but no doubt pleasant victory for the shit-stirrers. The BBC goes on to make the shit-stirrer case.

The Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association is continuing

… Read the rest

(This is a syndicated post. Read the original at FreeThoughtBlogs.)

Posted in Notes and Comment Blog
Tags: , , ,