June 9, 2006: Bud Talkinghorn & Political Correctness

When the shadow falls on political correctness--the terrorism debate

For a while I have followed the writings of Irshad Manji. Unfortunately, even for the most educated Muslim readers of The Globe and Mail she is haram, hence taboo. She is a lesbian, you see. I suspect she may have some hidden support from her sisterhood, however. She has, experience, first hand experience of the Islamic mentality. Despite death threats for her outspoken criticism of the more retrograde aspects of Islam, she perseveres. A mouthy dyke Islamic woman--what an abomination! Recently she related in a Globe and Mail article (June 6 A-section -- see below) how she stumbled on a Muslim prayer session at the University of Toronto. The leader was openly advocating jihad against the West. When she reported this to the university administration, they did nothing. Their august advice was that the Charter allowed even this sedition--but not derogatory statements against gays or visible minorities of course. This open call to murder was relegated to minor status. Free speech, you understand. The administration had to draw the line somewhere. [Note: they may advocate what Bud has mentioned but we must not utter anything negative against any Islamist activity that would upset Muslims. Then we are called racists who are partaking in backlash. NJC]

Now, take this line of reasoning to the strip mall mosque/ Islamic educational center and you have the same moral blindness from authorities. For years, hardcore Wahhabi imams have been imported to give "religious" instruction to impressionable Islamic-Canadian youth. Channel these youths' hormonal rush to have sex, and their need to find a personal identity and you have the setting for fanatical devotion to an supremist ideology. It overrides their natural youthful inclinations and focuses their minds on some future idyllic goal. It might be the 72 virgins, a purified Islam, or the pride of place amongst the martyrs of jihad.

Try as we might, we can never forget the names of Klebold and Harris--(At least some of us cannot). Their mindset was almost as demonic as these youths--just in the service of a different delusion. It was a nihilistic fantasy, just in a minor key. Nevertheless, the same incubus seems to be loose in today's world. Our youth are fed a non-stop diet of mass murder through movies, TV, and the ultraviolent, hands-on video games like Grand Theft Auto. For these Islamic youths, the news of al-Qaeda's latest slaughter in Iraq and the Scarlet Pimpernel-like figure of al-Zarqawi--pre his demise--has obviously created a fascination with attacking the infidels. How much more exciting to play the real game of "Death to the Unbeliever".

Irshad Manji has shown us how an unenlightened religious vision can gain adherence amongst disafflected Islamic youngsters. And how we have allowed Canada to blinker itself from this on-going radicalization? We need more Muslim voices like hers.

© Bud Talkinghorn


Excellent

Irshad Manji: Blaming the rest of the world Print Edition 06/06/06 Page A17

Three years ago, as writer-in-residence at the University of Toronto, I was putting the final touches on my book, The Trouble with Islam Today. One afternoon, I took a break to stretch my legs. Strolling past the debates room in the student centre, I saw mounds of shoes and realized it must be time for ''jummah'' prayers -- the communal worship in which devout Muslims participate every Friday. The place was packed with men, mostly young, many wearing logos of local sports teams.

It is behind a firewall.

The official website of Irshad Manji, author of The Trouble with Islam -- . At the World Economic Forum in January, ... Let's look at ourselves for a moment and stop complaining and blaming the other all the time. ...



Irshad Manji - Islam and Respect for other religions


Simon & Schuster: The Caged Virgin: An Emancipation Proclamation ... I find myself in good company: Salman Rushdie, Irshad Manji, ... habit of blaming themselves for the ills of the world, while seeing the rest of the world ...