A couple of years ago, I attended a town hall at the Islamic Center of Orange County in Garden Grove. The head imam there is Muzammil Siddiqi, past president of the Islamic Society of North America and also head of the Shura Council of SoCal. The topic was sharia and how it is perfectly compatible with the US Constitution (which it is not). It was a who's who of panelists including Maxine Waters, Sheriff Lee Baca (now indicted), Cong. Judy Chu and Loretta Sanchez, the then US Atty in LA, Andre Birotte Jr and LAPD commander of anti-Terror Mike Downing among others. They all told us that sharia was right in line with US law. Of course they didn't mention hudud sharia, which outlines punishments for "Crimes against God" including adultery, homosexuality, apostasy and blasphemy-all punishable by death.
After the event, I talked to Downing and told him that in 1992 Siddiqi had hosted Omar Abdel Rahman, the terrorist "blind sheikh"{ at his mosque and had translated his sermon about jihad into English. Downing's response?
"Well, you know, Gary, some people change over time."
Y'know, it's one thing if people do not wish to join the discussion concerning the meaning of Sharia to US immigration policy, but they need to stop telling the world that those of us who are concerned with this matter are a bunch of bleeding racists.
It's a significant part of the reason that Hillary got beat.
Gary, Some people do change over time, and that is probably what Siddiqi and company have been hoping for, and it looks like they're having success. But it's the wrong people.
I have listened to Siddiqi speak about 5 times. I have spoken with him one on one and asked him questions on subjects like death for apostates. He was evasive. I have given him Nonie Darwish's Freedom letter a simple request to the leading Muslims in the country to say that American apostates should not be harmed. He has refused to sign the statement claiming there is no death for apostates under Islam. In short, he is a dissembler.
I have listened to Siddiqi speak about 5 times. I have spoken with him one on one and asked him questions on subjects like death for apostates. He was evasive. I have given him Nonie Darwish's Freedom letter a simple request to the leading Muslims in the country to say that American apostates should not be harmed. He has refused to sign the statement claiming there is no death for apostates under Islam. In short, he is a dissembler.
The Democrats are doing the country a terrible disservice by not allowing the conversation to even take place. From the hard-left to the center-right the conversation around Sharia and immigration runs the gamut from verboten to strongly frowned upon.
And so ends up formulating the discussion?
Breitbart and those guys.
People voted terrorism and immigration only second to economics. By making the center feel like a bunch of assholes for even raising the question, they just drove millions of people into the arms of Donald Trump.
By the time that Obama referred to Fort Hood as "work-place violence" it was already very clear that those guys were entirely out to lunch on this issue.
Not surprising, I suppose. The last time that I was there, a few years ago, I forgot about the rule against bringing Jewish religious items up onto the Temple Mount and they confiscated a shofar that I had purchased until I came back down.
I didn't like it then, either.
But the point, of course, is that there is nothing the least bit racist in opposing the Jihad and until we acknowledge this we'll never be able to discuss this problem in a reasonable and fair manner. That's my main point, Joseph.
A clueless response that diverts from the point made.
Israel accepts an extremely limited application of Sharia. That was the law of the Mandate since 1922. So what is the point or implication? That it is like Saudi Arabia or Mauritania?
This line of reasoning illustrates why progressives are on a track to marginalization. It will be increasingly be the case if things get better with the new administration.
People seem to know who puts out fake news. It will become more acceptable to challenge the progressive orthodoxy and its chokehold on media, culture and academia. Hopefully, it won't take too long for common sense to return instead of political religion.
Not only do we have Sharia Courts in America, we also have Bet Din courts. Courts encourage the use of alternative dispute resolution systems because they view the justice system as overcrowded. Sharis Courts, along with the Bet Din, are available to anyone in this country as long as they agree to go there. Anyone can resolve, for example, marital issues there, but of course for administrative reasons, a divorce can only be granted by a civil judge. Similarly, the government will not agree to the resolution of a criminal matter in a religious court. Civil disputes, normally between members of the same religion, can be settled by a religious court. In fact, Spinoza may have been shunned by the Jewish community for going to a civil court rather than the Bet Din. In fact, today, we are obligated to go to the Bet Din first, for disputes between Jews, and only go to civil courts if we get permission from the Bet Din.
What does this have to do with the price of cheese?
The point is that when religious law like Sharia is supreme, it provides the basis for inequality and oppression.
To suggest that limited jurisdiction of religious courts, which remain under civil law, refutes the point made about Sharia, is an absurdity, and helps illustrate a mindset out of touch with reality.
Fail to see the point for the link, except as another example of a jaunt down diversion lane.
The learned Iman repeatedly states that it is necessary by Shariah to abide by the laws of the country one lives in, regardless of the nature of the law, as long as it does not contradict Shariah.
That does not even get to the substance of the laws themselves, which are highly discriminatory toward women and non-Muslims, and oppressive to all its adherents, even Muslims, despite the fact that people practice and obey.
A Bet Din is more like arbitration, which is also outside of any court. In fact anyone with a credit card has already agreed to settle all disputes via arbitration. But we Jews are keenly aware that Dina d'malkhuta dina. I do not believe such an edict exists in Islam.
it's unclear to me just what your larger point is.
My point, clearly, is that there is nothing the least bit racist about opposing the advancement of Sharia (Jihad).
If we wish to oppose the Jihad, which I do, the first thing that we need is to overcome the progressive taboo in even discussing the issue.
The second thing that needs to happen is to convince those very same socially-frightened people that, perhaps, head-chopping Christians or destroying ancient antiquities or calling for the conquest of Jerusalem (and, thus, the genocide of the Jews) might be something that well-meaning liberals could bring themselves to oppose.
Is there Sharia outside of Muslim dominated countries?
Arguing with many people on the left has become an exercise in arguing with people who are either psychotic or pretend to be. I can't have a useful dialog with someone who believes they were abducted by aliens and taken to visit Elvis on the moon. We can't get past that or around it. Yes the reason you hate Israel or Trump is because space aliens are beaming messages directly to your brain.
A couple of years ago, I attended a town hall at the Islamic Center of Orange County in Garden Grove. The head imam there is Muzammil Siddiqi, past president of the Islamic Society of North America and also head of the Shura Council of SoCal. The topic was sharia and how it is perfectly compatible with the US Constitution (which it is not). It was a who's who of panelists including Maxine Waters, Sheriff Lee Baca (now indicted), Cong. Judy Chu and Loretta Sanchez, the then US Atty in LA, Andre Birotte Jr and LAPD commander of anti-Terror Mike Downing among others. They all told us that sharia was right in line with US law. Of course they didn't mention hudud sharia, which outlines punishments for "Crimes against God" including adultery, homosexuality, apostasy and blasphemy-all punishable by death.
ReplyDeleteAfter the event, I talked to Downing and told him that in 1992 Siddiqi had hosted Omar Abdel Rahman, the terrorist "blind sheikh"{ at his mosque and had translated his sermon about jihad into English. Downing's response?
"Well, you know, Gary, some people change over time."
Hey man, thanks for dropping in. I appreciate it.
DeleteY'know, it's one thing if people do not wish to join the discussion concerning the meaning of Sharia to US immigration policy, but they need to stop telling the world that those of us who are concerned with this matter are a bunch of bleeding racists.
It's a significant part of the reason that Hillary got beat.
Gary,
DeleteSome people do change over time, and that is probably what Siddiqi and company have been hoping for, and it looks like they're having success. But it's the wrong people.
Jeff,
DeleteI have listened to Siddiqi speak about 5 times. I have spoken with him one on one and asked him questions on subjects like death for apostates. He was evasive. I have given him Nonie Darwish's Freedom letter a simple request to the leading Muslims in the country to say that American apostates should not be harmed. He has refused to sign the statement claiming there is no death for apostates under Islam. In short, he is a dissembler.
Thanks Mike. You do good work. Your article with Cinnamon was excellent.
DeleteJeff,
DeleteI have listened to Siddiqi speak about 5 times. I have spoken with him one on one and asked him questions on subjects like death for apostates. He was evasive. I have given him Nonie Darwish's Freedom letter a simple request to the leading Muslims in the country to say that American apostates should not be harmed. He has refused to sign the statement claiming there is no death for apostates under Islam. In short, he is a dissembler.
The Democrats are doing the country a terrible disservice by not allowing the conversation to even take place. From the hard-left to the center-right the conversation around Sharia and immigration runs the gamut from verboten to strongly frowned upon.
ReplyDeleteAnd so ends up formulating the discussion?
Breitbart and those guys.
People voted terrorism and immigration only second to economics. By making the center feel like a bunch of assholes for even raising the question, they just drove millions of people into the arms of Donald Trump.
By the time that Obama referred to Fort Hood as "work-place violence" it was already very clear that those guys were entirely out to lunch on this issue.
Not surprising, I suppose. The last time that I was there, a few years ago, I forgot about the rule against bringing Jewish religious items up onto the Temple Mount and they confiscated a shofar that I had purchased until I came back down.
ReplyDeleteI didn't like it then, either.
But the point, of course, is that there is nothing the least bit racist in opposing the Jihad and until we acknowledge this we'll never be able to discuss this problem in a reasonable and fair manner. That's my main point, Joseph.
A clueless response that diverts from the point made.
ReplyDeleteIsrael accepts an extremely limited application of Sharia. That was the law of the Mandate since 1922. So what is the point or implication? That it is like Saudi Arabia or Mauritania?
This line of reasoning illustrates why progressives are on a track to marginalization. It will be increasingly be the case if things get better with the new administration.
People seem to know who puts out fake news. It will become more acceptable to challenge the progressive orthodoxy and its chokehold on media, culture and academia. Hopefully, it won't take too long for common sense to return instead of political religion.
Not only do we have Sharia Courts in America, we also have Bet Din courts. Courts encourage the use of alternative dispute resolution systems because they view the justice system as overcrowded. Sharis Courts, along with the Bet Din, are available to anyone in this country as long as they agree to go there. Anyone can resolve, for example, marital issues there, but of course for administrative reasons, a divorce can only be granted by a civil judge. Similarly, the government will not agree to the resolution of a criminal matter in a religious court. Civil disputes, normally between members of the same religion, can be settled by a religious court. In fact, Spinoza may have been shunned by the Jewish community for going to a civil court rather than the Bet Din. In fact, today, we are obligated to go to the Bet Din first, for disputes between Jews, and only go to civil courts if we get permission from the Bet Din.
ReplyDeleteWhat does this have to do with the price of cheese?
DeleteThe point is that when religious law like Sharia is supreme, it provides the basis for inequality and oppression.
To suggest that limited jurisdiction of religious courts, which remain under civil law, refutes the point made about Sharia, is an absurdity, and helps illustrate a mindset out of touch with reality.
http://islamqa.org/hanafi/daruliftaa/8502
DeleteFail to see the point for the link, except as another example of a jaunt down diversion lane.
DeleteThe learned Iman repeatedly states that it is necessary by Shariah to abide by the laws of the country one lives in, regardless of the nature of the law, as long as it does not contradict Shariah.
That does not even get to the substance of the laws themselves, which are highly discriminatory toward women and non-Muslims, and oppressive to all its adherents, even Muslims, despite the fact that people practice and obey.
By the way, many Orthodox strenuously object to Jews going on the Temple Mount until the Messiah comes.
ReplyDeleteA Bet Din is more like arbitration, which is also outside of any court. In fact anyone with a credit card has already agreed to settle all disputes via arbitration. But we Jews are keenly aware that Dina d'malkhuta dina. I do not believe such an edict exists in Islam.
ReplyDeleteJoseph,
ReplyDeleteit's unclear to me just what your larger point is.
My point, clearly, is that there is nothing the least bit racist about opposing the advancement of Sharia (Jihad).
If we wish to oppose the Jihad, which I do, the first thing that we need is to overcome the progressive taboo in even discussing the issue.
The second thing that needs to happen is to convince those very same socially-frightened people that, perhaps, head-chopping Christians or destroying ancient antiquities or calling for the conquest of Jerusalem (and, thus, the genocide of the Jews) might be something that well-meaning liberals could bring themselves to oppose.
Is there Sharia outside of Muslim dominated countries?
Of course.
But what is your point?
Arguing with many people on the left has become an exercise in arguing with people who are either psychotic or pretend to be. I can't have a useful dialog with someone who believes they were abducted by aliens and taken to visit Elvis on the moon. We can't get past that or around it. Yes the reason you hate Israel or Trump is because space aliens are beaming messages directly to your brain.
ReplyDeleteOk. Have a good time with that.