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"Tradition?? The only good traditions are food traditions. The rest are repressive."

"There are two ways to think. The first is to trust to your ancestors, your religious leaders, or your charismatic professors. The second is to question, to challenge, to explore history for meanings, and to analyze issues. This latter is called Critical Thinking, and it is this that is the mission of my web site. "

Dr. Laina Farhat-Holzman  

December 2016

Darwin Awards



My periodic "Darwin Awards" columns are to nominate those human beings whose existence lowers the global IQ.

Saudi Man Shoots Doctor Who Delivered His Wife?s Baby
This man was not only ungrateful, he was stupid. He was outraged to learn that a male gynecologist had been present at the birth of his wife?s baby. The doctor had seen his wife naked, he sputtered. The Saudi police tracked him down and arrested him, but will the Saudi "justice" system give him a prize?

"Outrageous Profiling!" she said.
A Muslim woman is suing the city of Chicago and six officers who falsely singled her out as a potential terrorist on July 4, 2015. She left a subway station wearing a headscarf, face veil, and carrying a backpack. In her lawsuit, she claimed officers pulled off her religious garb, arrested her, and later strip-searched her. Nothing was found (this time). The police report says that officers were on high alert of terrorist activity that day and that this woman was exhibiting "suspicious behavior." Indeed she was, and the police would have been in real trouble if a woman so covered had been a suicide bomber. Burqas can hide suicide belts and guns too.

The Drinks Made Me Do It!
Nicholas Mullins, 31, beat his girlfriend at the Sands Casino Resort in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania so badly that her brain swelled and she nearly died. Utterly remorseless, he is now suing the Sands Casino, which he blames for serving him "too many free drinks." Did they hold him down and force the drinks on him? Let?s blame the court for giving him probation.

"Women should reduce their sexual desires because Egyptian men are sexually weak."
This astonishing headline in a Cairo Egypt newspaper (reported by the Washington Post) was a statement by an Egyptian lawmaker, Elhamy Agina, making an argument in favor of female genital mutilation (FGM). Agina suggests that since the procedure reduces women?s sexual pleasure and desire, they will remain with husbands with less than stellar sexuality. This is the best way to assure domestic tranquility, he said. He condemned the overwhelming sale of male sexual stimulants "that only the weak will consume." Egypt needs population control anyway.

Turkish Pianist Acquitted of "Denigrating Religious Beliefs."
It took five years in court to finally come to a verdict that a famous Turkish pianist is not guilty of denigrating religious beliefs. His 2012 tweets had included a joke about a shortened call to prayer, mentioned a traditional alcoholic drink, and offered verses from Omar Khayyam, the medieval Persian poet who loved wine. Say was sentenced to 10 months in prison, but was released on probation for the next five years waiting for the resolution of this stupid case. With more cases like this, the worst elements of misplaced piety make Turkey ridicullous.

Iran gives 99 Lashes to College Students.
For the terrible sin of attending a graduation party that included men and women, 30 students were sentenced to 99 lashes each. This sentence was carried out in Qazvin, 90 miles northwest of the capital. There have been no reported cases of like punishment in Tehran, where many young people are members of important families. The Islamic law punishes mixed-gender parties, dancing, and the consumption of alcohol, all sins common in Tehran even among the children of the hard-liners.

How to Spend Money When Broke!
In Tehran, the police chief has announced his department had deployed 7,000 male and female officers for a new plainclothes division---the largest such undercover assignment in memory. These officers will patrol the streets and nail women who are insufficiently covered up, wear too much makeup, who excessively honk their car horns, or whose car engines make too much noise.

Rape Law Protest.
A late 1940s law still on the books in Lebanon, allows a rapist to get away with his crime if he marries his victim. This law is being reviewed in parliament, although some supporters argue that the marriage will salvage the "honor" of the woman and her family.

A dozen Lebanese women, demonstrating against this law, dispute the "honor" of this practice. They gathered outside Parliament wearing white wedding dresses stained with fake blood and bandages. Men who protect this law lower the world?s IQ.

Indonesian Governor in Blasphemy Trial.
Indonesia, once considered a model of Islamic democracy, is no longer so. A governor, a Christian, elected to office to the delight of pro-democracy Jakartans, is now on trial for "insulting Islam," the crime of blasphemy.

Governor Basuki Tjuhaja Purnama is the first ethnic Chinese to be elected governor in more than half a century. Indonesia has changed. During the election campaign, opponents cited the Quran (correctly) that non-Muslim must not lead Muslims. The governor light-heartedly commented that this citation was designed to fool the people in a democratic election. Prosecution claims this is insulting and criticizing Islam. So much for Islamic democracy.

Dr. Laina Farhat-Holzman is a historian, lecturer, and author of God's Law or Man's Law. You may contact her at Lfarhat102@aol.com or www.globalthink.net.

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