All entries by this author

Danish Satirical Website Upset Catholics *

Nov 10th, 2007 | Filed by

Says John Paul was not faultless.… Read the rest



Interview With Azar Majedi

Nov 10th, 2007 | By Rosa Valentini

Would you say that the British have become aware of the danger of multiculturalists’ policies since the London terrorist attacks?

Azar Majedi: It is difficult to judge the British public opinion, as it is usually the media that makes and shapes the public opinion. As far as the British political arena is concerned, I must say no, it has not changed. The British government continues the policy of appeasement of the so-called “Muslim leaders,” who, to my opinion, are self appointed. Consulting with these religious men, in order to “win the hearts of the Muslim community”, is the British government’s key policy.

Unfortunately, an atmosphere of mistrust has developed between the so-called Muslim community and the general public. The Muslim … Read the rest



Chatting With Bari

Nov 10th, 2007 10:13 am | By

A self-appointed ‘community spokesman’ does some speaking.

Sir Salman Rushdie should never have been knighted, he says. “He caused a huge amount of distress and discordance with his book, it should have been pulped.”

Ah. So any book that causes ‘a huge amount of distress and discordance’ should be pulped? That might include a lot of books, yeh? Plus Bari isn’t altogether consistent.

According to a recent report by the Policy Exchange think-tank, the bookshop at the east London Mosque, which Dr Bari chairs, stocks extremist literature. “The bookshops are independent businesses,” he says. “We can’t just go in and tell them what to sell…”

Or that their books should be pulped? Hmm?

His passion is to integrate Muslim

Read the rest


Bush Maneuver Packed Civil Rights Panel *

Nov 9th, 2007 | Filed by

Appointed two Republicans who then registered as Independents.… Read the rest



Steven Pinker’s The Stuff of Thought *

Nov 9th, 2007 | Filed by

Spanish-speakers with Tourette’s blurt out ‘hostia’ – communion wafer.… Read the rest



Four Charged With ‘Treason’ in Pakistan *

Nov 9th, 2007 | Filed by

So it’s ‘treason’ to oppose a military coup. Funny.… Read the rest



Over 700 PP Members Arrested Overnight *

Nov 9th, 2007 | Filed by

Five people in Karachi charged with sedition for protesting the emergency. … Read the rest



Lancet Study Finds Chiropractice Has no Effect *

Nov 9th, 2007 | Filed by

Results showed no difference in recovery times and in all cases symptoms lasted for about nine days.… Read the rest



What Happens When Females are Worthless *

Nov 9th, 2007 | Filed by

People resort to medical technology to do away with the girl child at the foetal stage. … Read the rest



Gina Khan on Breaking the Silence

Nov 9th, 2007 | By Ophelia Benson

Last February an article by Mary Ann Sieghart in the Times (London) introduced us to Gina Khan: ‘a very brave woman. Born in Birmingham 38 years ago to Pakistani parents, she has run away from an arranged marriage, dressed herself in jeans and dared to speak out against the increasing radicalisation of her community.’ Here she tells us more and brings us up to date on her campaign.

What prompted you to start speaking out?

I had been doing my own research for a few years. After all, being a British Asian woman from a Pakistani ethnic background, a Muslim, the atrocities commited in the name of Islam effected me profoundly. Being a Pakistani had its own stigmas – being … Read the rest



HRCP on the Emergency in Pakistan *

Nov 8th, 2007 | Filed by

Asma Jahangir and others in Human Rights Commission send messages.… Read the rest



Catholic School Drops Terrence Higgins Trust *

Nov 8th, 2007 | Filed by

‘London Oratory school will always want to work with organisations whose practices support Christian values.’… Read the rest



Richard Norman on the Complications of Faith *

Nov 8th, 2007 | Filed by

A mistaken argument is still an argument, still an appeal to reason and evidence.… Read the rest



Noah Feldman on Cosmopolitanism [pdf] *

Nov 8th, 2007 | Filed by

Can we make legal demands on people with whom we are not joined in a political association?… Read the rest



Priests Fret at Lower Alcohol Limit for Drivers *

Nov 8th, 2007 | Filed by

It’s the Mass you see. The wine isn’t wine, it’s blood, but it still makes you drunk.… Read the rest



Judgment Day: Intelligent Design on Trial

Nov 8th, 2007 | By Barbara Forrest

NOVA Documentary: “Judgment Day: Intelligent Design on Trial”

When: Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Louisiana Public Broadcasting, 7-9 p.m.

WYES, New Orleans, 7:30-9:30 p.m.

View online on Wednesday, November 14, 2007.

The story of the first legal case involving intelligent design creationism, Kitzmiller et al. v. Dover Area School District (2005), will be told in a two-hour documentary, “Judgment Day: Intelligent Design on Trial,” that will air on PBS’s NOVA on Tuesday, November 13. Barbara Forrest, Professor of Philosophy in the Dept. of History and Political Science at Southeastern Louisiana University, served as one of the expert witnesses for the plaintiffs and will be featured in the documentary along with other participants in the case.

In December 2004, eleven parents of … Read the rest



Fiction and unreality

Nov 7th, 2007 5:22 pm | By

The post on fictional characters has spawned a lot of offspring – Norm’s, George Szirtes’s, Mick Hartley’s, Tom Freeman’s.

The subject is related to one that Jean and I talked about a little today – when you’ve been in the blogosphere, have you been to a real place? When you interact via a blog, is that really interacting? Jean has a related post at Talking Philosophy.

I think Internet interaction is decidedly real interaction, but only for the people for whom it is so; that could be everyone, for all I know, but I don’t think it necessarily is. But I think it is so, at least, for people for whom language, thinking, writing, talking … Read the rest



Evangelical Appointed to Human Rights Watchdog *

Nov 7th, 2007 | Filed by

Vocal opponent of legislation banning anti-gay discrimination on Equality and Human Rights Commission.… Read the rest



Witnesses Say Gough Did the Right Thing *

Nov 7th, 2007 | Filed by

‘The biblical instruction is coupled with adultery and sexual immorality,’ Witness said.… Read the rest



Background: Women Under Siege in Afghanistan *

Nov 7th, 2007 | Filed by

The state cannot protect women and ensure that they can go about their work safely.… Read the rest