This op-ed over at Al Jazeera reminds me of an awful lot of communist and fascist writings as published in Europe in the first (and communist / socialist; also second half) of the 20th century; radical idealism hiding behind a mask of intellectualism. (more…)

Islamists have threatened a Christian Bishop in the Philippines… (H/T: UP Pompeii)

Philippine bishop reports receiving threat to convert to Islam

MANILA, Philippines (CNS) — A bishop in the southern Philippines reported receiving a letter threatening him with harm if he does not convert to Islam or pay “Islamic taxes.”

Such brazenness in a country where over 86% of the population is Christian, 9% is Muslim and the remaining 5% is divided among various groups such as: Buddhists, Hindus, Sikhs, animists and non-believers.

Even if those who sent these letters are no more than common criminals who use religion as a mere tool, the fact that they chose to represent themselves as Muslims is in itself significant. But Muslim brazenness does not stop there, unfortunately, this one is far from an isolated case! Remember the kidnapped and murdered Chaldean archbishop of Mosul, Mgr Faraj Rahho? What about the plight of Assyrian Christians in Iraq? What about the Sabian Mandaeans? Or the plight of Christians girls kidnapped in Nigeria by practitioners of the Religion of Peace? What about the treatment of Christian Copts in Egypt? Ot the threats against Western politicians like Geert Wilders or Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi? The list, gentle reader, goes on and on ad nauseum…

You may read the rest at: Freedom’s Cost

“Killing is to continue until the unbelievers pay jizyah (subjugation tax) after they are humbled or overpowered,” the radical Pakistani cleric wrote in his book, “Islam and Modernism,” which in 2006 was translated from his native Urdu into English.Usmani advocates spreading sharia law in America and the West — the barbaric legal code that not only justifies holy war, but the stonings, floggings, amputations and even beheadings for petty crimes seen in Muslim nations such as Saudi Arabia, Iran and Sudan.The aim of Muslims, he wrote, is to “take out people from the rule of people and put them under the rule of Allah.”

You can be sure Usmani will make a case as being a victim of criminal Islamophobia. About his obvious Infidel-a-Phobia, however, no one will say a word! No doubt the multicultural crowd will claim that the capitalist Dow Jone has overreacted and will urge us all to be more understanding. At any moment I expect to see a statement from CAIR (although they seem to have their own little problem right now), and the various Muslim associations in the US, condemning Dow Jones move. While you are expecting the usual reactions… don’t hold your breath waiting for the UN Human Rights Council to condemn Infidel-a-Phobia, or to declare it a crime like they did in the case of Islamophobia.

Read the rest at: Freedom’s Cost

Gunmen have stormed an elementary school near Peshawar, in Pakistan, taking children and teachers hostage. There are conflicting accounts as to how many children are being held, with police reporting around 25, but others raising that number to 250. Apparently, the militants originally planned to kidnap a local health official, but were thwarted and in the process of escaping, went into the school and took the children.

Here’s hoping there isn’t a repeat of the Beslan tragedy, and all the children, and their teachers are safely released.

Update: The gunmen have released the children (final number around 200) and surrendered to tribal authorities. A happy ending, thank goodness.

The Scream, a monument by Jeroen Henneman for director and columnist Theo van Gogh, who was murdered by Mohammed Bouyeri, a Dutch-Moroccan Islamist, on November 2nd 2004 in Amsterdam. As I wrote in an article for the Dutch daily Friesch Dagblad on Thursday, his murder and that of Yitzhak Rabin ( on November 4th 1995, by a religious extremist who is not less fanatic than Mohammed B. ) are remembered in the same week. In 2005 I wrote an article ( sorry, it is in Dutch ) about two parallels between the two murders and the aftermath of each of them. Not only did both murderers obtain at least some of their goals ( polarization and alienation in the Netherlands, polarization and a lack of any perspective towards peace in Israel ), in both countries a dangerous level of understanding for the murderers’ despicable acts has been and continues to be expressed, in parallel ways, sometimes by highly reasonable people: “Of course the act of Yigal A./Mohammed B. is wrong and should be condemned, but hey, Rabin/Van Gogh should not have angered and frustrated so many people in the first place.”