Thursday - February 21, 2008

Direct Hit

WASHINGTON — Debris from an obliterated U.S. spy satellite is being tracked over the Pacific and Atlantic oceans but appears to be too small to cause damage on Earth, a senior military officer said Thursday, just hours after a Navy missile scored a direct hit on the failing spacecraft.

Marine Gen. James Cartwright, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and an expert on military space technologies, told a Pentagon news conference that officials have a “high degree of confidence” that the missile launched from a Navy cruiser Wednesday night hit exactly where intended.

It was an unprecedented mission for the Navy, so extraordinary that the final go-ahead to launch the missile Wednesday was reserved for Defense Secretary Robert Gates rather than a military commander.

Alluding to a video clip of the missile smashing into the satellite, which he showed at the news conference, Cartwright said, “We have a fireball, and given that there’s no fuel (on the tip of the missile), that would indicate that that’s a hydrazine fire.”

The video showed the three-stage SM-3 missile launching from the USS Lake Erie at 10:26 p.m. EST, northwest of Hawaii, and of the missile’s small “kill vehicle” — a non-explosive device at the tip — maneuvering into the path of the satellite and colliding spectacularly.

He said the satellite and the kill vehicle collided at a combined speed of 22,000 mph about 130 miles above Earth’s surface, and that the collision was confirmed at a space operations center at 10:50 p.m. EST.

Well done. The Pentagon is confident that all the hydrazine burned up and that there is no piece of debris bigger than a football. So the US Navy saves the day, and we can all sleep comfortably now, not having to worry about getting clonked on the head by a poisonous bit of space junk. Woo hoo!!

For all you ballistics fans out there, 22,000mph is 32,267 feet per second, about 10-12 times faster than a rifle bullet. I have no idea what the kill vehicle weighs, but it has to have some manuevering rockets, some fuel, and some kind of telemetry transponder or some radar for guidance. So let’s guess it’s tiny and weighs in at 50 pounds, roughly the weight of 2000 average bullets. At 32,267fps this gives us an impact energy of 8,093,438,502 lb/ft, or 10,973,229,198 joules. Uh, nope, it don’t need no explosive tip. That’s roughly a million times more energy than a bullet from an elephant gun. Game over.

Posted by Drew458     on 02/21/2008 at 12:58 PM   
Filed Under: • Miscellaneous •  
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extremist books in which Jews were described as “monkeys” and Christians as “pigs

extremist books in which Jews were described as “monkeys” and Christians as “pigs

Islamic school ‘kept copies of race-hate books’
By Sophie Borland
Last Updated: 12:51am GMT 21/02/2008

An Islamic school that claimed to have destroyed all its copies of extremist books in which Jews were described as “monkeys” and Christians as “pigs” secretly photocopied them beforehand, a tribunal heard yesterday.

Colin Cook, a former English teacher, claimed that pupils as young as five were exposed to literature inciting hatred at the King Fahad Academy, a private school in Acton, west London.

Mr Cook, who taught there for 18 years, told Watford employment tribunal how pupils often made “inappropriate” remarks about killing Americans and praised Osama bin Laden and the 9/11 attacks.

The father-of-three from Feltham, west London, is claiming unfair dismissal and racial discrimination against the school which has taught children of Abu Hamza, the former Finsbury Park Mosque cleric currently serving seven years in prison for soliciting murder, and Abu Qatada, alleged to be bin Laden’s right hand man in Europe.

Mr Cook told the tribunal: “The race hate included test questions asking pupils to list the reprehensible qualities of Jews and describing Christians as “pigs”. It was appalling.”

He added that the books branded Christianity and Judaism as “worthless religions”.

When Mr Cook’s allegations were made public last February, Dr Sumaya Alyusuf, the headteacher, initially refused to withdraw the books because they had “good chapters that can be used by the teachers”.

Following intense media pressure, however, she had all the relevant pages removed. But Mr Cook said yesterday that they were photocopied before being shredded so they could be used again in future.

Last March, Ofsted praised the school for offering pupils “a balanced education and opportunities to develop their intellect and skills”.

Mr Cook, who has not worked since his dismissal, is seeking £135,000. The hearing continues.

http://tinyurl.com/29cwjh

Hmmm, I wonder if those good folks at the religion of peace, you know, the guys at the islamophobic watch will have something to say. Yeah, it was all planted by Christians and Jews.

Posted by Drew458     on 02/21/2008 at 04:46 AM   
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A shopkeeper could be charged with murder after defending himself

WELL BOYS ‘N’ GIRLS ... HERE WE GO AGAIN ?

Robber’s death could lead to murder charge
By Graham Tibbetts
Last Updated: 4:06am GMT 21/02/2008

A shopkeeper could be charged with murder after defending himself against an armed robber who was killed by his own knife, police said yesterday.

Violent crime costs economy over £13 billion a yea

Judges to get tough on ‘happy slap’ attackers

Tony Singh was about to drive home from work when he was attacked by a career criminal who smashed his car window and demanded his takings.

During the ensuing struggle at the corner shop and off-licence in Skelmersdale, Lancs, Liam Kilroe, who had convictions for armed robbery, assault and burglary, suffered a fatal stab wound to the chest.

Police later questioned Mr Singh, 34, who was also injured during the fight. They said yesterday that they were preparing a report for the Crown Prosecution Service, which will decide whether to charge him over the death.

The case is bound to re-open the debate about householders being allowed to use force to defend themselves and their properties, which came to prominence during the Tony Martin case.

the rest of the story here:
http://tinyurl.com/2jyff7

Posted by Drew458     on 02/21/2008 at 04:25 AM   
Filed Under: • Crime •  
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   Wednesday - February 20, 2008

Wishful Thinking…

Feeling guilty about not posting for so long, so here’s a Motorvator . Not that there hasn’t been plenty of topics lately, Especially down here Floriduh topics.. but I’ve just ended up being too busy, or Procrastinated, or have gotten beat to it by 1 of the other pros here. I will try to start coming up with something at least bi-weekly now.. but who knows that might just be more wishful thinking on my part LOL.

Posted by Infinity     on 02/20/2008 at 09:28 PM   
Filed Under: • Motorvators •  
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A REAL MOONBAT JUDGMENT

By Simon Heffer

The Telegraph
http://tinyurl.com/2555ao for more from simon

Lesbians - join the Army and make a killing

I fear we have become defeatist about the compensation culture, and I would plead as guilty to this as anyone. It seems the more we protest about absurd wastes of public money, the more public money is absurdly wasted. But no one should keep quiet about the monstrous, unjust and demented award of £400,000 to Lance-Bombardier Kerry Fletcher, a lesbian whose feelings were hurt by a senior NCO.

This pathetic “injury” is valued more highly than those suffered by our brave men, who now qualify for a maximum of £287,000 when their limbs are blown off. I won’t ask the usual question about what sort of society we are living in that behaves in this contemptible way, because, sadly, we know the answer. But I will muse on why anybody - apart from lesbians who want to get rich quick - should join our Armed Forces, when we treat our heroes so shabbily? And what sort of Army will that leave us with?

I kinda think this is a five bat post but will leave it at one because I have a feeling people can get even dumber then this. And will.
And Mr. Heffer asks a valid question at the end.  The answer scares me.

Posted by Drew458     on 02/20/2008 at 04:57 PM   
Filed Under: • Corruption and Greed • Insanity •  
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Not Exactly a Cakewalk is it now, Hillary?

Clinton looks to Texas, Ohio stop surging Obama - CNN.com

Haaaa..this s**t’s getting fun as hell to watch, isn’t it folks?
Hillary came into this little race thinking she had it all wrapped up and awaiting for her coronation.
Looks like we’re in some some ‘rasslin...

But what’s this?

‘Desperate’ Hillary asks Democrats to rewrite ballot rules - Daily Mail U.K.
(sorry couldn’t help myself. the title alone was worth the post. the picture on the article was just the icing on the cake)

Pass the beer and popcorn ‘round and settle in for a good one, my friends…

Posted by Severa     on 02/20/2008 at 04:28 PM   
Filed Under: • Democrats-Liberals-Moonbat Leftists •  
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ATTACKED IN BROAD DAYLIGHT AS DRIVERS PASS BY

Says something about the state of society and how much (or how little) ppl regard one another.
Would I have stopped?
I’d like to think I would have even at my age.  Maybe it’s generational.  I just don’t understand how anyone could pass by and do nothing.

Roadside sex attack ignored by drivers
By Stephen Adams
Last Updated: 3:31am GMT 13/02/2008

A woman suffered a “serious sexual assault” by the side of a busy road as motorists drove past but failed to stop and help, police have said.

Minutes earlier the 20-year-old had managed to fend off the man after he leapt on her and tried to drag her into a car park.

She made it to a main road in the middle of Stockton-on-Tees.

She thought she was safe, but at least five cars simply passed by, with some even slowing down to look before speeding off.

The hoody-wearing man continued to attack her, punching the woman in the face a number of times, pinning her down and sexually assaulting her.

Det Sgt Mick Todd, of Cleveland Police, said: “It took place in the middle of the road, but not a single person stopped.

“There were at least five cars that passed her as she was lying on the road while the attack was taking place. We need those drivers to come forward.”

Police described the attack early on Sunday morning as a “serious sexual assault”.

The woman suffered severe bruising and swelling to her face.

Det Sgt Todd described the suspect as “a young athletic man of medium build” who was wearing a white hooded top with the hood up.

He said yesterday: “This man subjected the young woman to a violent and sustained attack and she is with her family, recovering.”

Frank Cook, the Labour MP for Stockton North, said: “It is difficult to generalise, but I have to say if it had been me driving past I would have been compelled to stop.”

While women must consider their personal safety and taxi drivers the welfare of their passengers, he urged: “Those of us who can be more vigilant must be more vigilant and perhaps put our own safety on the line if it is necessary.”

http://tinyurl.com/2v5qxr

Posted by Drew458     on 02/20/2008 at 11:18 AM   
Filed Under: • Crime • Outrageous •  
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A BIT OF MOONBAT HUMOR with MUCH THANKs to our BMEWS tech guru, DREW.

Posted by Drew458     on 02/20/2008 at 08:06 AM   
Filed Under: • Humor •  
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   Tuesday - February 19, 2008

One for Doc Jeff

quote actually said by A.J. Liebling, May 14, 1960 in The New Yorker magazine but usually attributed to:

Posted by Drew458     on 02/19/2008 at 02:15 PM   
Filed Under: • Humor •  
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castro retires

He isn’t yet completely dead, but the old bearded bastard has finally stopped even pretending he can still run Cuba. He has passed the baton of tyranny to his brother Raul. Raul is said to be a reformer, but I suggest a serious wait-and-see approach before anyone changes their attitude towards Cuba. But we can allow ourselves one or two small grains of hope. Just one or two.

We take you now to our non-affiliate Free Cuba blog on the spot, Babalu Blog:

**BREAKING NEWS** fidel castro “retires”

To my dearest compatriots, who have recently honored me so much by electing me a member of the Parliament where so many agreements should be adopted of utmost importance to the destiny of our Revolution, I am saying that I will neither aspire to nor accept, I repeat, I will neither aspire to nor accept the positions of President of the State Council and Commander in Chief.

Read it in Granma, and below the fold, in Spanish, followed by the English version.

Right now, at this late hour, my emotions are in turmoil.

Prepárense

One would imagine that news of the official retirement of the beast who ruled an island nation ruthlessly for almost half a century would be announced with a little more ceremony. Instead, Granma slipped the announcement into their online edition in the wee hours of this morning as if it were filler. Ziva, who has the advantage of being on Pacific Time, caught it immediately, however.

Now will begin the new barrage of castro puff pieces—the wonderful, benevolent, tenacious freedom fighting bearded devil.

Prepare yourselves, my friends; it is going to be a love fest of epic proportions, which will be topped only by the orgy that will take place when the dictator finally kicks the bucket.

The news trucks have already lined up and raised their satellite thingies in front of Versailles. Local reporters are already shoving their microphones in front of mouths in search of opinions. The experts have been called and their take has been taken. The news is spreading like wildfire - all over the radio airwaves, on every TV station, scattered about the internet like spam.

fidel castro has “officially” stepped down.

I certainly dont want to rain on anyone’s parade, there is, after all, a little bit of happiness buried deep down inside because of the news, but, at the risk of sounding cliche, this is a tempest in a teacup.

We’re going to hear hopes that this is the beginning of change in Cuba. We’re going to hear arguments for the lifting of the embargo. We’re going to hear wishy washy eulogies and praise for the bearded bastard. We’re gonna hear a lot of crap today and in the next few days. Cuba experts will be coming out of the woodwork with their own particular theories and there will most certainly be editorials galore.

A commenter said it best in this post:

Much ado about nothing. What does this change? Nothing. Cubans are still oppressed, the island is still a hell hole and the man in command still bears the last name (c)astro. All this means nothing.

I wholeheartedly agree. This changes absolutely nada. For all intents and purposes, for the past year or two, fidel castro has been but a blurb in the book of Cuba’s political leadership. The man who held the world in terror in the sixties reduced to writing editorials for a mouthpiece “newspaper.”

There is very little that I can say about this news that Val Prieto over at Babalu can’t say better, and hasn’t said a million times before. But if you do see some useful idiot wearing a Che shirt today, feel free to give them a nice punch in the face. Stay tuned to Val’s blog for any and all updates.

Cuba is not going to turn into a free country overnight because of old Fidel stepping down. His little brother Raul has been with him since the beginning, and is just as much a repressive, murderous thug as he is. You will be able to play “spot the leftist” very easily for the next few days, as the MSM and various political candidates wax orgasmic over how wonderful Fidel was, how marvelous Cuban health care is, how all the little brown Cubans now know how to read, et cetera et cetera ad nausium. The raw truth is that Cuba is the shithole of the Caribbean soley because of nearly 50 years of marxist rule by a bloodthirsty dictator. The people have no freedom. The people have no rights. The people have no opportunity. The people lack damn near everything and the world has passed them by. Whoop-de-do, they can make some really nice cigars. Too bad smoking is about the worst politically incorrect activity going these days.

A free Cuba would be almost Edenic. It’s a great big island with good soil, a really nice climate, and a population eager to get ahead if they would be allowed to. Plenty of room for agriculture, plenty of room for industry. Given a free Cuba, I would like to see the USA’s Sugar Act disemboweled. Given a free Cuba, I would like to see a whole lot of industry currently sending zillions to communist China redirect to a much more local place, like this one. It is abhorent that so much of our goods are made by our enemies. Sure, Mexico could be a viable alternate, but the corruption there is just epidemic. A free and democratic Cuba could make trillions. But this is not going to happen under communism, nor under anyone named Castro.  Switching one Castro for another is not going to change much of anything. Raul needs to go too, along with the entire thugocracy that runs the place. Until that happens Cuba will remain a paradise in potentia.

The South African newspaper Pretoria News quotes the Prime Minister of Denmark, who has a realist view on the whole Fidel situation:

Copenhagen - Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen on Tuesday hailed Fidel Castro’s decision to give up Cuba’s presidency, saying he would not miss him on the political stage.

“There is reason to hail with great satisfaction” Castro’s decision to renounce power in Cuba, which “can only be a step in the right direction,” the head of Denmark’s centre-right ruling coalition told reporters.

Rasmussen said he hoped Castro’s departure would lead to “the beginning of reforms in Cuban society and gradual liberalisation for the population.”

The former leader of the island nation “will not be missed politically,” he added.

Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt said Castro’s departure gives rise to the possibility that the island nation will shift towards democracy.

“Even if the switch to his brother Raul Castro probably won’t lead to any immediate large changes, we hope this will introduce a shift towards democracy,” Bildt said in a statement.

“Fidel Castro’s resignation marks the end of an era that began with huge hopes but ended with oppression,” he pointed out.

“The people of Cuba have the same right to freedom and democracy as all other people,” Bildt said, adding that “our great hope is that new possibilities to develop in this direction will also create new possibilities for cooperation between Cuba and the rest of the world.”

Alexis Gainza Solenzal, a Cuban exiled in Sweden who edits the magazine Miscelaneas de Cuba, said “I don’t expect any development towards democracy."”

sources
FoxNews
CNN
BBC
Associate Press
Rueters

Posted by Drew458     on 02/19/2008 at 12:14 PM   
Filed Under: • Commies •  
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   Monday - February 18, 2008

‘pass’ language exam without speaking.

Poor babies ... “too stressful?”
Where’s Drews bat?  I need it here.  Thought I wuz thru for the day but couldn’t resist this one.
Drew ... Please drop that bat in here somewhere.

Pupils ‘pass’ language exam without speaking
By Melissa Kite and Julie Henry
Last Updated: 11:22pm GMT 16/02/2008

Oral tests are to be axed from foreign language GCSE examinations because they are regarded as being “too stressful” for pupils.

The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority will announce this week that teenagers will no longer have to demonstrate they can speak a language in the traditional oral exams that currently account for half the marks at GCSE level.

The decision to replace them with “continual assessment” by teachers was condemned last night as “dumbing down”. Key elements of the language exam have already been eroded under Labour’s reforms. Pup-ils can now pass French GCSE without writing a word of the language. The exam is dominated by multiple-choice questions. All that is required is to tick a box or to link phrases.

Michael Gove, the shadow schools secretary, said: “After being told they could get a pass without writing a word in a foreign language, now pupils are being told they can pass without speaking it. Once again this Government is moving the goalposts on examinations. Instead of proper rigour, we have got a watering down of standards.

“Language teaching is facing severe problems and our children’s capacity to succeed in an ever more competitive world won’t be helped if qualifications can be awarded without their actually acquiring proper skills.”

The decision to scrap tests follows recommendations in Lord Dearing’s Languages Review, commissioned by ministers last year. The report said oral tests were an unreliable measure of capability, and put pupils off taking languages.

It said “the present method was too stressful and too short” to be reliable. “We propose that these parts of the examination should be over a period through moderated teacher assessment.” Prof Alan Smithers, the director of the University of Buckingham’s Centre for Education and Employment Research, said scrapping the test negated the whole point of gaining the qualification.

“The reason we learn a modern foreign language is to be able to speak it fluently and to be able to do so in all conditions,” he said. “Teacher assessment is notoriously unreliable when teachers are then judged in league tables on the exam results their students gain. If this is an attempt to boost results by making the exam more palatable to students, then it is misguided because we will be fooling the pupils, employers and universities.

“One consequence is that students going on to A-level who believe they are good at the subject, then find they cannot cope with higher-level studies.” In the long-established oral test, students converse for about 10 minutes with their teacher in their chosen language.

The exchange is recorded on tape and sent to examiners. In future, oral skills in lessons will be assessed by teachers who will award marks that will be moderated by examiners. It is not clear whether any oral work in class will be taped or how examiners will judge a teacher’s assessment.

The number of pupils taking modern language GCSEs has been falling since 2002 when the Government made them optional from age 14. Figures show that up to 1,500 secondary schools do not enter any pupils for foreign language GCSEs. At A-level, French entries have dropped by 20 per cent and German by 32 per cent in the past six years, raising fears that the subjects are becoming the preserve of the private sector.

http://tinyurl.com/2fj2yk

updated ... with extra battiness. Peiper, it’s the button that says *Bat on it in the second row, 5 buttons to the right of the blockquote button. This is some article ... no writing, no speaking. Do they even have to be able to read any fwench to pass, or have they lowered the standards so far that if the student can point to some cheese, a beret, or a crappy ugly car two times out of three, that’s french enough? (yeah yeah, if they know how to set the car on fire then they get an “A")

Posted by Drew458     on 02/18/2008 at 12:01 PM   
Filed Under: • Education •  
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I GUESS WE’RE ALL A BUNCH OF FASCIST BASTARDS

I happen to stumble on this today, and frankly I find it a bit scary.

In fact, it might even be scarier then me.

It Is:  Islamophobia Watch

I’d heard of em somewhere but hadn’t seen their site till today.

May I suggest ALL OF YOU (I’m not shouting) visit there.

Apparently none of us have a valid reason to fear this wonderful life affirming religion of peace.  Anything we might say that appears in the slightest negative
may be seen as “Fascist” and in fact is they say a product of Western Imperialism.

Well ... this’ll come as a surprise to Dr. Jeff for one.  We’re fascists too doc.  Gee, you don’t look fascist Jeff.

Apparently we haven’t any cause, indeed we may not have any right to fear for our own culture, our own traditions indeed there’s no reason at all to worry about the future of our countries.  To fear for our own kind is the same as being racist and holding islamophobic thoughts and ideas.  Maybe.

Bottom line is I think, we do not have a natural right to dislike these ppl.  But the truth is, I don’t like em much and do not understand why I can’t say so without having to answer for my personal beliefs and attitudes.

There’s a lot more to be said on the subject but I am reminded of something Drew and Christopher have said and they’re right.

Not a great idea to post while angry or upset.  Better to cool down first.

Posted by Drew458     on 02/18/2008 at 10:13 AM   
Filed Under: • Miscellaneous •  
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ISLAM IS TAKING OVER, says Dutch politician

Islam is taking over, says Dutch politician

By Bruno Waterfield in The Hague
Last Updated: 2:29am GMT 02/03/2007

An anti-immigrant politician is making a meteoric rise with his call on the Dutch - once one of the most tolerant nations in the world - to stop Islam taking over Europe.

Geert Wilders, the 43-year-old leader of the Freedom Party, is convinced that governments are being forced to accommodate a ‘tsunami of Islamisation’ that is fundamentally incompatible with European social values.

“Islam itself is the problem. Islam is a violent religion,” he told The Daily Telegraph. “The Prophet Mohammed was a violent man. The Koran is mostly a violent book. We should invest in Muslim people but they have to first get rid of half the Koran and half of their beliefs,” he said.

The Freedom Party has jumped from six to 10 per cent in opinion polls since November. His passionate campaign for a ban on the Islamic veil, or burqa, in public places is gaining such momentum that the country’s new coalition government could be forced to introduce the ban it does not support.

On the burqa, Mr Wilders is adamant: “It is a medieval token of a barbaric time, of how not to treat women, even if they want to wear it themselves,” he argues.

Allowing Muslims to wear the burqa in the Netherlands, or to have segregated swimming sessions so as not to offend religious sensitivities, amounts to “religious apartheid” he says.

The new government coalition of mainstream centre right and left political parties had planned to ditch a decision by the previous government to ban the burqa in the Netherlands which now has a population of one million Muslims, six per cent of the total population. But, Mr Wilders crows, weekend opinion polls show 66 per cent of Dutch citizens support a ban.

The minority opposition leader who has won two previous votes for a ban on the burqa is convinced that support will be there for new legislation he will table in the spring as the Dutch become increasingly concerned over Muslim separatism.

Wilders is convinced there is growing support for his views across Europe but its political leaders, particularly in Britain, are too obsessed with being politically correct.

“There is almost no country more politically correct than the UK. Look at the terrible things that happened in London after Madrid, you have more reason than most to make this debate transparent and public,” he said.

Mr Wilders split from the Dutch liberals in September 2004 over their support for EU membership for Turkey.

Two months later he was living in fear after police arrested suspected terrorists, armed with grenades, accused of planning to kill him. The Dutch politician says he and his wife have received more than 600 death threats.

Mr Wilders, who is always surrounded by plain clothes police guards, said: “I lost my freedom and privacy because of my opposition to Islam.”

http://tinyurl.com/yocbz6

Posted by Drew458     on 02/18/2008 at 09:41 AM   
Filed Under: • Illegal-Aliens and Immigration • RoPMA •  
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WILL THE DUTCH BOW TO IRAN?

THE DUTCH SHOULD NOT BOW TO IRAN

Posted by Andrew McKie on 18 Feb 2008 at 11:11
The Telegraph

Some people find the Low Countries odd, with their mixture of liberalism and old-fashioned manners. I’ve always loved them. But the Dutch have been finding that maintaining tolerance in the face of militantism is a trying business. The murder of Pim Fortuyn, late on a Sunday evening in 2002,was one of the first rapid-response obits I did, and seemed the more shocking because it was the first prominent political assassination in that country since William the Silent was killed in 1584.

Murdered Pim Fortuyn rejected multiculturalism and socialism

Fortuyn – not a man with whom I would have felt a great deal of sympathy on most things, I suppose – seemed to have struck a chord in the Netherlands by understanding that tolerance is different from multiculturalism. And on that, alas, subsequent events appear to bear him out.

To be tolerant implies that one might disapprove – even very strongly disapprove – of someone else’s beliefs, but not attempt to prevent him or her from holding them. We can all think of repulsive doctrines, from radical Leninism, with its stated policy of exterminating enemies of the state (still strongly promoted by middle- class students at second-rate universities and by dons at almost every university) to the ravings of the BNP, whose disgusting rants are given undue attention because of the reluctance of the mainstream parties to tackle the question of immigration.

Of all these issues, the most pressing is Islam. Most of us know Muslims whom we regard as good colleagues, neighbours or friends.

(yeah, right. but keep ur eyes peeled guy, and try not to become one of their victims. which you could do simply by not agreeing with em.)

But when the Dutch film-maker Theo van Gogh set out (in what I admit was a childish and offensive fashion) to affront Islam, he was killed. That is not the reaction that has greeted any affront to Christian sensibilities. The makers of Jerry Springer: The Opera may have annoyed many Christians. The Christian response was not to murder them.

The Iranian government now wants the Dutch government to ban a film, or suffer the consequences. This newspaper was the first to draw attention to Geert Wilders’s plans. I don’t know much about Mr Wilders, and I suspect that, as with Mr Fortuyn, I won’t share many of his opinions.

But even if his film is offensive and aggressive about Islam, I can’t see why it shouldn’t be shown. And if the Netherlands bans it on the basis of a threat from Iran that any civil disorder which follows is justifiable – since that is what it amounts to – that will be a disgrace.

http://tinyurl.com/32nfa6

Posted by Drew458     on 02/18/2008 at 09:26 AM   
Filed Under: • Miscellaneous •  
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THE SERVICES AND MATERIALS ON THIS WEBSITE ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND THE HOSTS OF THIS SITE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF SATISFACTORY QUALITY, MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, WITH RESPECT TO THE SERVICE OR ANY MATERIALS.

Not that very many people ever read this far down, but this blog was the creation of Allan Kelly and his friend Vilmar. Vilmar moved on to his own blog some time ago, and Allan ran this place alone until his sudden and unexpected death partway through 2006. We all miss him. A lot. Even though he is gone this site will always still be more than a little bit his. We who are left to carry on the BMEWS tradition owe him a great debt of gratitude, and we hope to be able to pay that back by following his last advice to us all:

1. Keep a firm grasp of Right and Wrong
2. Stay involved with government on every level and don't let those bastards get away with a thing
3. Use every legal means to defend yourself in the event of real internal trouble, and, most importantly:
4. Keep talking to each other, whether here or elsewhere

It's been a long strange trip without you Skipper, but thanks for pointing us in the right direction and giving us a swift kick in the behind to get us going. Keep lookin' down on us, will ya? Thanks.

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