Isaac Schrödinger

Slightly Dead

The Telegraph:

In Pakistan, conversion [from Islam] is technically legal BUT those who do convert are dubbed "apostates" and often killed.

I hate that BUT.

Link via Western Resistance.

Tasty Zero

Jonah Goldberg:

... I would like to report that I think Coke Zero is fantastic.

Heretic!

Pony Up, Infidel!

Charles links to a list of demands by Swedish Muslims. For example:

A mosque in every city or county would have significant value to the Muslims of the country. It would be seen as a recognition of the existence of Muslims and Islams right to exist in Sweden.

As opposed to the present atmosphere in Sweden where Islam is outlawed and Muslims are flogged for owning a Quran. Oops, I confused Islam and Sweden with Christianity and Saudi Arabia. My bad.

Sweden can't win with this one. If Sweden gives money to Muslims, then it'll be taken as jizya. If Sweden doesn't, then Wahabbis will happily fill the vacuum. Either way, the mosques will be off-limits to the infidels. Thus, they'll be perfect for Islamist propaganda and ammunition (the kind that goes boom). Those who think that this scenario is far-fetched should look at what happened in Fallujah and the outcome of the raid at Finsbury Park Mosque in London.

Here's another demand:

To support the establishment of Islamic elementary schools in densely populated areas with many Muslims where Muslim students would have the opportunity to study in homogeonous groups could reinforce the students cultural and religious identity and this way many of the problems that Muslim students meet every day would very simply be eliminated, among other things Native Language, religious education, the issue of Muslim food, the gymnastics [physical education] question, and there could be a concrete way of helping girls and boys from Muslim countries to participate in segregated swimming classes and thereby graduate with a school diploma.

My reaction to this heinous demand was visceral. To see why, just click here. Western governments must seriously monitor such schools for two reasons:

1. To check whether the students are being nourished on hatred or not.
2. To make sure that corporal punishment doesn't go unpunished.

Good luck Sweden. I sincerely hope that you folks have a backbone.

Strangling the Canary

LFG:

This is once more evidence of how Europeans fail to understand the bigger picture and are more than willing to let some short term comfort prevail over the long term survival of core values that built their societies in the first place.

So what if Ayaan Hirsi Ali is being evicted from her apartment? The Islamists are only reacting to her disrespectful movie. It's not like the Islamists are going to be emboldened by this incident and in the future threaten innocent Westerners. Right?

Right?

The neighbours of Hirsi Ali are likely all for unbridled free speech, they just have a NIMBY attitude towards it.

Driving in Hell

The Saudi Gazette:

A WOMAN driving at a speed of 160km/hr was stopped by road patrol on the Madina-Qasim expressway recently, reported Okaz newspaper. Police were surprised when they found a woman in her 30s behind the wheel, while her younger brother was sleeping comfortably in the back seat. They were both taken to the police station where they stayed until the woman’s husband came to release them. He was forced to take a pledge that the incident would never repeat itself.

Have you ever read a more unintentionally misogynistic paragraph? The woman was taken into custody not for speeding but for the fact that she is a...she. Later, the husband, her legal guardian, has to promise, in effect, that he will make sure that she doesn't get into trouble again.

But remember, Islam treats women with the utmost respect.

Link via The Religious Policeman whose post is even more depressing.

A Familiar Brother

The Angry Arab shows his dark side. Just read through this post.

Sad Reality

BBC News:

Mohammed Umar Haleem Khan, 22, was told by US Embassy officials that "a lot of bad people" shared his name.

The Manchester Metropolitan University student had to pay an extra $80 (£45) to have his fingerprints checked against a US terror suspect database.

This is ridiculous. The governments should allocate their financial resources to check for fingerprints.

"I'm sure that if some white candidate came along there would have been no problem."

I'm sure that if nineteen non-white Muslims had not attacked the US on 9/11, there would have been no problem for you, Muhammed. But that is not the reality. Race, religion, and sex are the few factors that security personnal can and should use to check for potential suspects. Of course, such a method does not eliminate the threat, it only makes it harder for the Islamists.

I am saying this as someone who has been affected by the strict rules after 9/11. I have travelled to Saudi Arabia, with transit in Europe, from Canada and vice versa. The only time I ever missed a flight was when I didn't have a visa for transit. Yes, a visa for simply landing and waiting at an airport. Need I say that only citizens of certain nations need this visa.

Most of the people who're irritated by these rules are innocent and I'm sure they're offended by being singled out. They must understand: The motivating factor of these nations is security, not racism for its own sake. Pray tell if you know a better way of improving the system.

First link via Indigo Jo.

Double-digit Business Investment

The US economy galloped during the first quarter.

WiiViiv

What is Wii?

My opinion: It's a bad idea to brand stuff with a name that most people don't even know how to say. For example, Intel Viiv. What the hell was Intel thinking with that one?

Update
Foreign Dispatches: "Dumbest Console Name Ever"

The Iranian Nemesis

How will Iran respond to an American attack on its nuclear facilities?

According to the source, in case the US military attacks continue, more than 50 Shehab-3 missiles will be targeted against Israel and the al Quads Brigades will give the go-ahead for more than 50 terrorists cells in Canada, the US and Europe to attack civil and industrial targets in these countries.

[Emphasis mine.]

But... but Canada is largely against the "Bush" war. There aren't any Canadian troops in Iraq. And what about Europe? Large European nations such as France and Germany also don't have any soldiers in Iraq. These countries likely won't even take part in any attacks on Iran. So, why is Iran so hell-bent on attacking neutrals!?

It's like the Iranian regime hates practically all Western nations instead of just 'the two Satans'.

Update
The Big Pharaoh asks:

When will the Iranians do themselves and the world a favor and topple this regime?

The first few thousand who do try know that:

1. They will likely die.
2. There is little chance of success.

That is why dictatorial regimes in the world stay in power.

HellBoy's Pets

They are considered "filthy", "dirty", and "heinous" in Muslim societies. The Muslims meant the first photo here to be a colossal insult, instead it comes off as comical.

Understanding Jihad

A Pilgrim's Journey:

I am taking a class in Seminary called: Christianity and Islam. I have always loved studying Middle Eastern politics, history and religion and this class has been highly informative. I took a class taught by Dr. Patrick Sookhdeo, a former Muslim who is now a Christian living in England. He was absolutely brilliant. He is a top consultant to the British Military, Scotland Yard and NATO.

These organizations made a wise choice.

Almost Dying in Pakistan

After applying for refugee protection in Canada earlier this month, I kept a calm demeanor as I went about filling out the applications.

On the night of April 9, I found myself in a building in Karachi, Pakistan. My family used to live in an apartment there when we went to Pakistan for our annual trips. I started walking up the stairs towards our place. I saw many relatives along the way. They greeted me by smiling and choking me. I had to force their hands off from my neck. This unusual hospitality continued as I went up the stairs.

As I reached the last few steps, my mother came out from our apartment and started choking me. I pushed her hands away. I wanted to say, "What the hell are you doing!?" But it wasn't possible as my neck was soar and I couldn't produce an audible voice.

At this point, I woke up with sweat trickling down my face. I quickly stepped out of bed and got a glass of water while thinking, "What the hell was that?" I came back to bed where my pillow was soaked. It took some time for me to go into REM.

I haven't encountered such torment in a dream for a long time. The subconscious doth have a wicked sense of humor.

Aaiieeee 7: Return of the Mobo

I got the motherboard back on Tuesday. It took me about 70 minutes to plug everything back in. I powered up the computer and it has not given me a problem since then. Though, it still makes a slight chirping noise when I access the computer; I am pretty sure it's not the hard disks.

For the moment, it looks like there is harmony among the components. I bought the rig about three years ago, yet I don't have any compelling reason to upgrade. As long as nothing in the PC croaks, I'm sticking with this setup for at least another year.

To all my readers (yes, both of you), sorry for the depleted blogging in April. I'll make up for it in May.

Cruel Oil

Arab News:

The National Society for Human Rights (NSHR) has sounded an alarm bell about the increasing instances of domestic violence against men being reported in the Kingdom.

An increasing number of men have been complaining about their wives beating them up or pouring boiling oil on them, Al-Watan newspaper reported yesterday.

It just goes to show that domestic violence cuts both ways.

Still, I am quite shocked that the Saudi regime would allow Arab News to publish such an article. Just read the last paragraph and you'll know why.

Violence in the home there is not a surprise. Boys and girls learn from a young age that 'peace' and 'discipline' is maintained through the use of brutal force, both at home and in schools. I am waiting for the day when the Arab News publishes horror stories of young and innocent kids in Arabia who've been thrashed all their lives. It is mostly these kids who grow up and go on to terrorize a new generation.

Link via AbbaGav.

Perspective on "Better"

A friend of Mezba talks about the Middle East:

"It's better than the racism I face here [in Canada]." He retorted. "They don't say it, but it's there."

Yes, the Canadians are famous for their latent racism. Here's the proof. The Middle East, however, is an oasis of acceptance. Just read the last few sentences of this post and you'll know for sure.

Seriously, had one of my friends uttered such ungrateful tripe, I would have given him/her a piece of my mind.

Standing Up To The Man!

Like a two-year-old.

No Hope

Michael Totten in Israel:

“It’s especially disturbing when you know what those bombs do to the human body,” she said.

“Do I want to know?” I said. I was not sure I did.

She shrugged and raised her eyebrows.

“Okay,” I said. “Just tell me.”

Read it all.

Swedish Preferences

Yesterday, the ever-charming Kabobfest posted:

Sweden called off its participation in Volcanex 2006, an international air force exercise to take place in Italy next month, because of a certain apartheid state’s involvement in the drills.

Today, Sweden rolls up another one:

Swedish Ambassador to Israel, Robert Rydberg was summoned to the Foreign Ministry on Thursday to explain his government's decision to give visas to Hamas members to enter Sweden.

Director-General of the Foreign Ministry Ron Prossor said that Stockholm's decision effectively legitimizes terrorism, and that one cannot make the distinction between a terrorist organization and its members, Israel Radio reported.

That's correct. Sweden doesn't mind if antisemitic genocidal monsters visit their nation. However, an air force exercise with a tiny country that dares to retaliate against such monsters is a big no-no.

Stupid Girls

JK Rowling, a mother of two daughters, offers a scathing rant.

"Stupid Girls satirises the talking toothpicks held up to girls as role models: those celebrities whose greatest achievement is un-chipped nail polish, whose only aspiration seems to be getting photographed in a different outfit nine times a day, whose only function in the world appears to be supporting the trade in overpriced handbags and rat-sized dogs."

Talking about her daughters:

And frankly, I'd rather they didn't give a gust of stinking chihuahua flatulence whether the woman standing next to them has fleshier knees than they do.

Rowling sure has a way with words.

Putting $3 in Perspective

With gasoline prices over three dollars per gallon in most parts of the country, the Senate Finance Committee yesterday called for major U.S. oil companies to hand over their tax records. Republican Sen. Charles Grassley said, the Senate wants to know if the federal government is “getting it’s fair share of the action.” In related news, Exxon today called for the IRS to turn over its financial records as part of an informal investigation to discover how the federal government manages to take in $2 trillion per year in taxes, and yet still has to borrow money to fund operations.

From ScrappleFace.

Portrayal of Women

Dil-e-Nadaan learns some fine points from a Pakistani soap opera:

1) Women should stay up till their husbands come home (even if the hour is post 2 a.m.) to warm up their dinner. Lesson Learned: You can be a civil engineer, a business tycoon and an orthopedic surgeon yet you can’t use the microwave?!?!

It's a "respect" thing.

3) When woman’s fiancée leaves her for another woman. And when said fiancée’s parents force him to return and marry original woman. Original Woman stands by her cheating, lying, no-good fiancée and says she will be there for him forever. Lesson Learned: No matter what man does, woman should “stand by him forever.”

Yup. I have relatives who don't leave marriages where there is abuse, both verbal and physical. They really have no place to go if they were to get a divorce. Plus, since many marriages are between cousins, a divorce could cause friction within a family. So, such women suffer silently for "peace".

Cuckoo

Spain Herald:

An organization...is seeking a UN declaration on simian rights which would defend ape interests “the same as those of minors and the mentally handicapped of our species."

Jeff Goldstein:

Will the UN go along? Most likely. After all, issuing such a declaration is a lot easier than dealing with, say, African genocides or Iranian nukes. And every official UN declaration—no matter how silly—is followed by brie, bread, and wine. So it’s a win-win!

Does this mean that apes will be jailed for hurting other apes?

For Your Amusement

What fortune cookies say. My favorite: That wasn't pork.

Kicking Kos

John Hawkins:

If Karl Rove had came up with a scheme to use the liberal blogosphere to make it less likely that Democrats would get elected, he couldn't have picked a better Pied Piper for left-wing dopes than Kos.

Ouch!

Magnificent Creatures

The largest zoo in Pakistan is in Lahore. I went their with family in the mid 90s. I heard a lion's roar for the first time in my life there. We were hundreds of meters aways from the den, yet the booming sound still made an impression.

From Metroblogging Lahore comes the news that four white tiger cubs have died in the zoo. The cause? Disease, negligence or the combination of both.

Atrocious Diplomacy

New York Post:

The State Department blocked a New York congresswoman from traveling to Qatar after being informed she planned to raise sharp questions about a high-ranking Qatar official's relationship with the al Qaeda terror network, The Post has learned. Rep. Sue Kelly (R-Katonah) confirmed that she was forced to cancel a visit to Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates earlier this month after the State Department raised questions about her eligibility to receive official travel expenses.

Yeah sure, that's the reason: With annual government revenues at approximately two trillion dollars, the State Department can't provide a few thousand dollars to a dauntless American woman.

Link via Dhimmi Watch.

Sugarcoated 16

How many birthday parties involve elephants!?

Slim Data

Dand, a 16 GB flash card. It would be fun to take one to Saudi Arabia with all sorts of forbidden information: works authored by Jews, the Muhammed cartoons, and images of NAKED WOMEN!

The Iraqi Education

Callimachus:

It doesn't matter how you feel about Iraq. We have to learn to fight this type of war. Because wherever we go, it waits for us.

In the coldest possible calculation, Iraq is a school for that, for our young platoon leaders and pilots.

True. Christopher Hitchens has also expressed the same thoughts on many occasions. We are in the learning stage of this war. In a sense it's a stretched version of the year 1942 for the Americans.

Of course, anti-war folks are horrified by these words, "We're in training? You mean the US will fight many more wars in the near future!"

The US doesn't have a choice.

A Real Master

Banana Oil:

One of the more intirguing might-have-beens in film history is David Lean's last planned film. When is final illness incapacitated him, Lean was in preproduction on an adaptation of Nostromo. If anyone was capable of bringing this story to film, it was Lean. A script existed (and, I believe, was even published by Faber & Faber). A few years after Lean's passing, the BBC made a miniseries out of it from an adaptation of that script. (Take note ladies: It starred Colin Firth!) I never saw it, nor read the script. Right now I don't want to. There is simply no way it could even echo the genius Lean would have brought it in the production.

True. Who else could have possibly directed The Bridge on the River Kwai, Lawrence of Arabia and Doctor Zhivago. I can't think of anyone today who is that gifted. No, not even Spielberg.

"Tradition"

Mezba:

At my wedding, I am going to demand that the bride's party show up with purple M&M flavoured gulab jamuns.

I burst out laughing at that. Gulab jamun is a syrupy Indian sweet. I had never thought of a romance between Gulab jamuns and M&Ms. How about burfi with smarties!? Mmm.

His last paragraph is right on as well. I find the 'ghost-white' look to be scary. There is not even much point in going to a beauty parlor for the whole setup--just splash your face with water and then dump it in flour and you'll get the same effect.

In the West, the main obsession is mostly with smooth, soft and silky skin. In desi circles, it's largely about the 'correct' skin tone.

Inside Woman

An extreme moderate?

Gritty Garcia

Israellycool:

You can add Andy Garcia's name to my list of Hollywood celebrities with their heads screwed on correctly.

Same here plus I've always liked his acting. Two years ago I found out that he had left Cuba at a young age. Not only does he know the truth, he isn't cowered by the pro-Castro Hollywood mindset. That's quite rare.

The IMDb rating for his movie is incredibly high. I'll definitely watch it.

Slicing the Raptor

Pricey maintenance.

A Plus for Blu-ray

Engadget:

Straight from the rumor mill to your ears/eyes/brain: iPod Hub is reporting that "anonymous film industry insiders" are claiming that Apple is attempting to get iPod video-friendly versions of theatrical releases included in movie studios' Blu-ray offerings.

Race Against Time

The Sad Case Of Andrea Clarke at Right Wing News.

It's All About Zarqawi

Athena at Terrorism Unveiled provides analysis of the Zarqawi video.

Slouching Towards Burqa

Often in Saudi Arabia, I would come across certain pages of magazines that would look odd. Upon closer inspection, it would become clear that someone had taken a black marker to "cover up" the flesh of the various women in the advertisements. Devilish parts such as ankles, knees, shoulders, elbows and arms would no longer be visible to the Muslims of Arabia, thus saving them from doom and certain blindness.

Today, we get the news that a brothel in Germany was threatened; it was told to remove or "cover up" the flags of Saudi Arabia and Iran in an infidelicious poster. After looking at the huge ad, I wonder for how long the titillating women in advertisements in the West remain burqa-free.

Update
The Religious Policeman offers his take.

Segregation of the Sexes

The Big Pharaoh:

I don't get masturbatory thoughts from seeing your gender while they're working out! J-Lo is an exception though.

Hunh.

Saudi Justice

The Daily Times:

Sixteen-year-old Isma Mahmood was deported to Pakistan last month after serving six months in shackles and handcuffs in a prison in Saudi Arabia. Her crime: being raped by a Saudi man.

Of course, it's her fault. She likely didn't wear an abaya which made the man go crazy because of the lustful hair rays.

Link via Saudi Jeans.

Sickening

Sepia Mutiny: Ignorance of the Law is no Defense unless...

41 Years Later

"Kurt Waldheim (1986)"

Asian Economy

I don't even want to know what "meals" they serve.

Don't Mention the "I" Word

Baron Bodissey:

We all have to learn a new language. It’s called Dhimmispeak.

So far, we're picking it up quite well.

Never Forget

Rabbi Yonah:

Montage of pictures from Death Camps. Middle picture, top row: Gypsies await murder at Belzec.

See the dark photos here.

A post about this topic from last year: Cold.

Slanted Bias

LFG:

The multicultural mindset reaches its absurd dead end, unable to recognize either true heroism or true evil, in this unbelievably sick review of “United 93”.

It is quite puerile, especially this part:

10 percent of the movie's opening-weekend grosses are going to the United 93 memorial fund. Um, excuse me: TEN PERCENT?!! Of the OPENING-WEEKEND GROSSES?!!! Leaving aside the moral and ethical quandaries of selling a family member's death to Hollywood bigwigs (which should be paramount above all else), why would anyone choosing this path accept anything less than 100 percent of every bloody penny that this thing makes? In effect, this says to me that Universal and its subsidiaries, with the full complicity of the United 93 families, have deemed every person involved in the tragedy to be less-than-10 percent human beings, revivified corpses, essentially, whose total worth is dictated by the amount of cash mustered in a standard movie-going weekend.

Just see how this logic applies to other movies: James Cameron made money from a tragedy (the sinking of the Titanic); Spielberg and crew got rich because of the blood of millions (Saving Private Ryan); Terry George earned his bucks from a genocide (Hotel Rwanda).

The only "proper" way to make movies about wars, atrocities, and death would be to make not a single penny from the box office (donate all the money to charity and organizations). Yeah, that's a good incentive.

Puff Away

The 'Chief Terrorists Warning' cracked me up.

The Curse of the Black Gold

I have waited a long time for a Saudi to say this:

Any other country, I'd feel sorry for these guys. But it's not as if they don't have a wide choice of jobs anyway, jobs that someone in Cairo or Damascus or Amman would jump at if they were available in their own towns. And there are 1.25 million foreign drivers employed by Saudi households, we could 100% Saudiize those tomorrow, and I bet every single one of those guys can drive, even if he can't do anything else; the only obstacle would be their own vanity.

Yes! The entire nation of Arabia is swimming on oil. Why would any Arab even bother to work? The black gold, which many Muslims think of as a gift from Allah, has not made them culturally rich. In addition, almost the entire Saudi society is intellectually barren as it was before the discovery of crude.

The general Saudi attitude towards 'work' always reminds me of a scene from Lawrence of Arabia. Near the end of the movie, Lawrence is trying to divide labor among the different tribes. He tells one guy from a certain tribe to carry water to- and the guy immediately replies something like, "We don't carry water!" As though it's somehow insulting to transport water in a desert.

This contrast in work ethic is even more clear when one sees the numerous Third Country Nationals who slave away in the unforgiving heat of Arabia without a word of complaint. One truly has to see it to believe it.

The Saudis think that they are endowed with moral and spiritual superiority (don't laugh). This attitude mixed with a nonexistent work ethic has created a warped society. They import workers from Asia to do the dirty work and highly skilled labor from mostly America and Britain to keep the oil flowing. Yet, instead of learning from these 'aliens', the Saudi loath both these groups. The pressure to hire more and more Saudis to do local jobs is always present but for decades not enough Saudis have stepped up to fill the shoes.

For the Saudi society to improve, first their mindset will have to change. They will have to admit that they are not at all perfect.

Jihad is Bad For Your Health

Joe Katzman: "a state that doesn't exist can't gve you money". Quite right.