Stow the whining about "political correctness"; this is just racism

Can we get through this with a little less right-wing posturing? This incident has nothing to do with "political correctness," or with liberal political beliefs. Any fool can see that what's behind those guidelines is plain old racism.

What's noteworthy is that it's manifesting itself as a truly outstanding case of foot-in-mouth disease. It's well known that ignorant westerners cherish these bizarre beliefs about Muslims, but you hardly ever see the full set of them trotted out so unselfconsciously. Herouxville has made itself immortal. Historians will be making fun of those guidelines for centuries to come. We might as well get started making fun of them now.

They only manifest common stereotypes

I laughed profusely when I read this, although I must state that such stereotypes about Islamic law (shariah) & Muslims still exist in much of the western world, continuesly perpetuated in the media or by politicians, and even by Reg readers it seems. It is an arrogant stereotype that was created during the colonial era, to justify the need to invade Africa or Asia (or Iraq) to "civilise" those "Barbarians", to teach them about freedom, democracy, and Human Rights. It is such a pervasive stereotype that a very small minority of ignorant Muslims started believing that Islam actually said that. Please don't patronise Muslims, and don't insult people, Islam does not say those things. No Muslim government practices those things, nevermind that none of them purely implement Islamic law either, just like many African Christian states e.g. Zimbabwe, or Uganda (& the 'Lords Army') are not representitive of Christianity. How would you feel if you went to Dubai, or India to work and you were told, "Leave your way of life behind, we don't get high on cocaine or heroin everyday here, black people are equal citizens, we don't call women witches and burn them on the stake, we don't have sex with children, we don't punish rape with only 2 years sentences, we don't pass children around the neighbourhood in pedophile sex rings, we don't beat our wives while drunk, and we don't 'hang, draw and quarter' people.". You would laugh and feel insulted.

The percentage of Neanderthals responding here is impressive

I hope they're mostly from here in the U.S. - it would be depressing to think that the rest of the world has become as backward as we recently have.

- bill