Eternal Damnation Awaits Muslims Who Eat Thousand Island Salad Dressing!

YNET NEWS: Website calls on Israeli Arabs to avoid dressing after consumer discovers it contains alcohol

A website affiliated with the northern branch of Israel's Islamic Movement warned its readers to avoid a brand of Thousand Island dressing produced by a well-known Israeli company. The warning was issued after a local Arab discovered that the dressing contains alcohol.

The Palestine 48 website called on its readers to stay away from the dressing after being approached by Majdi Khatib.

"In recent days, another product was added to the list of products forbidden to Muslims because they contain alcohol," the website said. "Khatib discovered that the dressing contains alcohol and is sold naturally and inadvertently at Arab and Muslim shops." Thousand Island Dressing Stirs Muslim Row >>> By Roee Nahmias

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Maggie and Ron: The Transatlantic ‘Love Affair’
Photo of Ron and Maggie dancing courtesy of The Sunday Telegraph
THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: Ronald Reagan's last official act as President of the United States on January 11, 1989 was to sign a letter of thanks and appreciation to Margaret Thatcher, then beginning her last two years in Downing Street. That letter marked the end of a great political partnership - one as important historically as the wartime alliance between Churchill and Roosevelt but arguably both warmer and more successful.

Reagan and Thatcher sincerely liked each other and shared almost identical political views. There was no fundamental gulf between them similar to Roosevelt's suspicion of a British Empire that Churchill had pledged not to dissolve.

Their joint policies led to a victory in the Cold War that was more complete and less morally uncomfortable than Yalta's division of Europe into a continent half-free and half-slave. When Soviet communism collapsed peacefully along with the Berlin Wall ten months after Reagan left office, his penpal was generously quick to give him credit: Reagan had won the Cold War, she said, "without firing a shot". Their names have been historically linked ever since. How Margaret Thatcher Went from 'Madam Prime Minister' to 'Dear Margaret' >>> By John O'Sullivan | April 13, 2008

The Margaret Thatcher Years

What Is Margaret Thatcher’s Real Legacy? Have Your Say

Margaret Thatcher: The Patriot Who Vanquished Failure: After decades of decline, Margaret Thatcher's leadership brought courage and conviction to a nation that had grown used to second best, says Charles Moore

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Sheikh Qaradawi: A “Provocative and Hostile Act Against Muslims”
GULF TIMES: PROMINENT scholar Sheikh Yousuf al-Qaradawi has denounced Pope Benedict’s baptism of a Muslim-born journalist during the last Easter Mass at the Vatican as a “provocative and hostile act against Muslims”. 


Sheikh Qaradawi, who is the head of the International Union of Muslim Scholars (IUMS) and the European Council for Fatwa and Research, said the public baptism of Majdi Allam has provoked Muslims around the world.


“We do not feel regret over the conversion of that person. He has been a Catholic for more than five years. He was always attacking Islam, the Qur’an and me. The problem is that he was baptised by the Pope in public and in front of satellite TV cameras. This is a hostile act against Islam,” he told Doha-based Al Jazeera television.


“It is not strange that Allam, who betrayed his country and supported Israel, left his religion. We know that he is an agent of Israel. He would not contribute to Islam if he were a Muslim,” he said.


Qaradawi said the public baptism has worsened relations between the Vatican and IUMS. “We were looking for a different approach from the Pope after his anti-Islam remarks two years ago. But the Pope’s baptism of a person who was known for his enmity to Islam and the Qur’an made us stick to our previous decision to suspend the IUMS relationship with the Vatican,” he told Al Jazeera.


The scholar also blamed the West for worsening relations with Islam. “We try to seek peace with the Vatican and the World Council of Churches but in vain. They keep provoking us by their hostility.”


Egyptian-born Allam, 55, is married to a Catholic and has infuriated Muslims with his books and columns in the leading Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, where he is a deputy editor. The title of one of his books is Long Live Israel. [Source: Qaradawi Flays Pope’s ‘Hostile Act’] | April 12, 2008

Hat tip: Jihad Watch

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BBC Chief Warns of ‘Over-Cautious’ Islam Coverage
THE TIMES: Mark Thompson, the Director General of the BBC, tonight warned broadcasters against becoming overly-cautious in their reporting on Islam for fear of causing offence to Muslims.

Speaking at Westminster Cathedral Mr Thompson, a practising Catholic, said there was “a growing nervousness about discussion about Islam and its relationship to the traditions and values of British and Western society as a whole”.

He said that the BBC and other major channels “have a special responsibility” to ensure that debates about “faith and society” and about any religion “should not be foreclosed or censored”.

In an effort to demonstrate that his remarks were not targeted solely at ensuring that Islam received journalistic scrutiny, Mr Thompson also referring to his decision to broadcast Jerry Springer, The Opera despite an avalanche of complaints from Christians unhappy at the depiction of Jesus in the satire.

“There is no point having a BBC which isn’t prepared to stand up and be counted; which will do everything it can to mitigate potential religious offence; but which will always be forthright in the defence of freedom of speech and of impartiality,” he said.

The lecture, Faith and the Media, also discussed how religious broadcasting at the BBC developed from the secularist perspective of the 1960s and 1970s, when Mr Thompson worked on Everyman, to faith-oriented programmes that tap a “sharp revival of interest in the spiritual potential”.

He contrasted The Passion, a traditional portrayal of Jesus Christ’s last days written by Frank Deasey, with the previous attempt to tell the story of his life, Dennis Potter’s 1969 version of a self-doubting prophet in Son of Man[.]

“It is quite simply inconceivable that the BBC in the 1970s or 80s or indeed the 90s would have [shown] a drama about Christ’s passion across BBC One’s primetime schedule”. [Source: BBC Chief Mark Thompson Warns of 'Over-Cautious' Islam Coverage]

Hat tip: Dhimmi Watch

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Austria Wary of Banning Smoking
YAHOO NEWS (UK & IRELAND): VIENNA (AFP) - While many European countries have imposed smoking bans in bars and restaurants, Austria, afraid of hurting businesses, has so far resisted legislation preventing people lighting up where they please.

After a six-month break, the ruling Social Democrats and conservatives returned to the negotiating table this week to discuss a no-smoking policy in public places, an issue that has deeply divided politicians.

Conservative Health Minister Andrea Kdolsky and the Social Democrats want to protect non-smokers without hurting businesses, while the environmental Greens and trade unions are calling for a total ban.

A compromise deal, due to be presented in mid-May, suggests that all pubs, cafes and restaurants have a sectioned-off area for non-smokers, unless they are protected property or safety requirements make it impossible.

A new piece of legislation introduced at the beginning of the year required any place of 75 square metres (807 square feet) or more to offer a non-smoking area, while smaller businesses could choose whether or not to serve smokers.

"We cannot overly regulate. A total ban would cause problems," Kdolsky's chief of staff Michael Kloibmueller said, referring to claims that it would infringe on businesses' rights, an argument used by a German court to relax a total ban on one-room bars. Austria Wary of Banning Smoking >>> By Luc Andre | April 9, 2008

THE GUARDIAN:
The death of the village pub: They are closing at a rate of two a day. Have you lost yours? By Allegra Stratton

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Obama Rues “Bitter” Voter Remark
BBC: Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama has said remarks about "bitter" working-class people "clinging to guns or religion" were ill-chosen.

After a storm of criticism from his rivals, Hillary Clinton and Republican John McCain, Mr Obama said he "didn't say it as well as I should have".

He made the contentious remarks at a fundraiser in San Francisco on Sunday.

The Illinois senator is ahead of Mrs Clinton in terms of delegates won in the Democratic primaries so far.

Mrs Clinton is hoping to reduce his lead when Pennsylvania holds its key primary election on 22 April.

However, the majority of polls published last week suggested Mrs Clinton's lead in the state had narrowed to the low single digits.

'Out of touch'

Mr Obama was accused of taking a condescending view of small-town voters after he was filmed at the private fundraising gathering last weekend, during which he said he understood why residents of some hard-pressed communities grew angry.

"You go into these small towns in Pennsylvania and, like a lot of small towns in the Midwest, the jobs have been gone now for 25 years and nothing's replaced them," he said.

"And it's not surprising, then, they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion or antipathy to people who aren't like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations," he added. Obama Rues “Bitter” Voter Remark >>> | April 12, 2008

THE SUNDAY TIMES:
Barack Obama 'Belittles' Small Town America: Obama, the “arrogant elitist, with little feeling for ordinary voters”? By Tim Shipman in Washington | April 13, 2008

‘Terrorist’ link puts Barack Obama under fire: Another dubious contact is dogging the Democrat hopeful | April 13, 2008

SPIEGELONLINE INTERNATIONAL:
Obama’s Mask Slips >>> By William Kristol | April 14, 2008

SPIEGELONLINE INTERNATIONAL:
Blue-Collar Distrust of Obama in the Rust Belt >>> By Cordula Meyer in Reading, Pennsylvania | April 14, 2008

REUTERS:
Obama Defends "Bitter" Remarks as McCain Attacks >>> | April 14, 2008


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Deadly Blast Strikes Iranian City of Shiraz
BBC: At least eight people have been killed and more than 50 wounded in an explosion in the southern Iranian city of Shiraz, Iranian media reports say.

The blast occurred in a mosque in the city either during or after evening prayers, the reports said.

Iran's Fars news agency was quoted as saying that the explosion was caused by a bomb. It said at least three of the wounded were seriously hurt.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the blast[.]

Fars said the death toll was expected to climb. [Source: Deadly Blast Strikes Iranian City] | April 12, 2008

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How Wrong Could the EU Foreign Ministers Have Been?
EURACTIV.COM: EU foreign ministers on Saturday (29 March) broadly condemned a controversial film released by Dutch MP Geert Wilders which portrays Islam as a religion which incites violence, but defended the filmmaker's freedom of expression.

"The film equates Islam with violence and this view is sharply rejected," the ministers said in a statement released after their meeting in Brdo, Slovenia on 29 March. "The problem is not religion, but abusing religion as a pretext for sowing hatred and intolerance," the EU foreign ministers added.

Among other scenes, the 15-minute film includes footage of the September 11 terrorist attacks superimposed alongside verses quoted from the Qur'an, beheadings of hostages and executions of women wearing the hijab (covering the head and body of the wearer).

Muslim organisations condemned the film. Describing it as a "deliberate act of discrimination against Muslims," the secretary general of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference, Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, said the footage was designed to "provoke unrest and intolerance".

Similarly, EU foreign ministers condemned the content of the film, but were quick to defend Mr. Wilders' right to make it. "The production of this movie falls within the exercise of the rights all our citizens have," they insisted.

Likewise, the Council of Europe defended Wilders' freedom of expression, albeit "in this case with disappointment and concern," describing its release as a "sad day for European democracy". The principles of European democracy were being used "to promulgate intolerant and deeply offensive stereotypes," said Terry Davis, the secretary general.

Perhaps mindful of the extent of the reaction to the publication of the Mohammed cartoons in 2005, EU foreign ministers stressed that "feeling offended is no excuse for aggression or threats". EU Foreign Ministers Condemn Dutch Film on Islam >>> | March 31, 2008

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Schism: A Saudi’s Riposte to Fitna
THE TELEGRAPH: A Saudi man has created a riposte to films criticising Islam in a video which portrays Christianity as a religion of violence.

The film, entitled Schism, was made by Raed al-Saeed. It splices together Bible verses and Iraq war images - including British soldiers beating civilians.

Other images show Christian extremists in America apparently encouraging children to fight a "war" for Jesus.

The film, which was posted on the internet last month, was initially removed by YouTube, the video sharing site. Mr Saeed complained to the site and it has been restored.

Mr Saeed said his film was not intended to outrage or provoke, but rather to illustrate how all religions could be depicted as preaching violence.

"It is easy to take parts of any holy book and make it sound like the most inhuman book ever written," reads the closing image in the six-minute film. Schism is a response to the recently released film Fitna by Geert Wilders, the Dutch politician, in which acts of violence by Islamic extremists are inter-cut with Koran verses.

It had been feared that Fitna would prompt violent global outrage amongst Muslims. So far, however, reaction has been muted.
Instead it has spawned a host of parodies as well as more serious responses such as Mr Saeed's film.

"In Schism I have used the same methodology that Wilders has used and that involves taking texts out of context," he said. [Source: Muslim Depicts 'Violent' Christianity] By Harry de Quetteville

Schism:

EUROPE NEWS:
The Message of Schism

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Farewell Israel: Bush, Iran and the Revolt of Islam
A political documentary written and directed by Joel Gilbert. View the trailer HERE
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Key to the Ka’aba Breaks All Records in Sotheby's Sale
Key to the Ka’aba fetches record price at auction. Photo courtesy of the BBC
BBC: A 12th Century key to Islam's holiest shrine has sold at auction in London for £9.2m ($18.1m).

The key to the Kaaba - the ancient cube-shaped shrine in Mecca - went to an anonymous bidder at Sotheby's.

The auction house said the price set a record for the sale of an Islamic work of art.

Made of iron and measuring 37cm (15in) in length, the key is engraved with the words "This was made for the Holy House of God".

The key was the centrepiece of Sotheby's Islamic art sale, which realised more than £21.5m ($40m) in total.

'Important symbol'

Head of Sotheby's Islamic art department Edward Gibbs said: "Remarkably, the sale realised more than the Islamic department's annual total for 2007, demonstrating beyond doubt the burgeoning and international demand for Islamic art."

The key is the only known example to be in private hands. All of the other 58 Kaaba keys are in museums.

Sotheby's said the key was "arguably one of the most important symbols of Islam".

The auction house said the keys were dedicated to caliphs, starting with the Abbasid caliphs in Baghdad.

"As a physical object, the key to the holiest building of an entire religion, it demonstrates the authority of the caliph and is the ultimate emblem of power," said Sotheby's. [Source: BBC: Holy Islamic Key Sets Sale Record]

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Go Easy Now Qaradawi! Tiny Amounts of Alcohol for Muslims Are Permissible
BBC: A prominent Egyptian cleric has created controversy by issuing a fatwa that says tiny amounts of alcohol are permissible in Islam.

Yusuf al-Qaradawi's fatwa says a level of 0.5% is allowed, whereas most Muslims would say alcohol of any quantity is banned.

Sheikh Qaradawi was recently refused entry to Britain as the UK government said his views could spark violence.

He issued his fatwa in response to a question about high energy drinks. Alcohol Fatwa Sparks Controversy >>> By Frances Harrison, Religious affairs reporter, BBC News | April 11, 2008

BBC: Qaradawi Not Allowed into UK | February 7, 2008

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J K Rowling Calls for Darfur Action
Watch BBC video HERE
BBC:
READ: Rowling Demands Action in Darfur >>>

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A Word of Advice to All Married Men: If You’re Having a Bit on the Side, Look After Your Kit!
BRISBANE TIMES: MANILA - A housewife in the Philippines today cut off her husband's penis while he was sleeping in their house because she suspected he was having extra marital affairs, a police officer said.

Police officer Rolly Lipata said 37-year-old Lenly Bayabado had long suspected her younger husband's infidelity, prompting her to cut off his organ.

Lipata said neighbours rushed the screaming victim, 32-year-old Joelito, to a nearby hospital in the Manila suburban city of Pasig after the attack.

Bayabado underwent several hours of operation so his organ could be re-attached, but hospital sources said there was no guarantee he would still be able to perform sexually.

Bayabado denied he was cheating on his wife and said he will not file charges against her because he wants to keep the family intact for the sake of their four children. [Source: Man Sticks by Wife Who Cut Off Penis]

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”Blair Force One”? Palace? Flunkies? Lotsa Euros? All Are ‘On the Cards’ for the President of Europe
THE TELEGRAPH: The proposed full-time president of the European Union is to be given a personal jet, a palatial official residence and a personal staff of up to 22, under plans being considered in Brussels.

The prospect of a private aircraft raises the possibility that Tony Blair, the current frontrunner for the new post, which comes into effect next year, could get the "Blair Force One" he was denied as prime minister.

The terms of the new president were discussed at a secret "working dinner" held on Tuesday between José Manuel Barroso, the European Commission president, and EU ambassadors.

One attraction of the job will be its clout in terms of the "cabinet" of advisers the new president will be able to assemble. Current proposals suggest an EU presidential team of between 16 and 22 people. Such a number would be an important measure of the power of the position. In comparison, Mr Barroso presides over a cabinet of 13 people.

Other EU member states, including federalist countries keen to give the post an aura of gravitas - and even statehood - have urged that the new president be granted an official "White House" style residence worthy of his status.

Because the new "President of the Council" will have a globetrotting role, some diplomats have argued that he, or she, should have the use of a personal aircraft, leading to inevitable comparisons with the American presidential jet, Air Force One. 'Palace, Jet and Personal Staff of 22' for the New EU President >>> By Bruno Waterfield in Brussels | April 11, 2008

TELEGRAPH LEADER:
The EU's Grand Designs for New President | April 11, 2008

Hat tip: Brussels Journal

PETITION:
Stop Blair!

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Herzschrittmacher für Chirac
NZZ Online: (sda/afp) Frankreichs früherer Präsident Jacques Chirac ist am Freitag am Herzen operiert worden, wie sein Büro in Paris mitteilte. Die seit mehreren Tagen geplante Operation sei «perfekt» verlaufen. Der 75-jährige Chirac werde das Pariser Spital Pitié Salpêtrière in wenigen Tagen verlassen können. Der ehemalige Staatschef war im September 2005 wegen einer leichten Gehirnblutung im Spital behandelt worden. Chirac war französischer Präsident von 1995 bis 2007. [Quelle: NZZ: Herzschrittmacher für Chirac]

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Carla? She's Worth Her Weight in Gold!

The Dawning of a New Dark Age (Paperback - UK)
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’Martyrdom’ Islamic Style

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More Proof of Turkey’s Unsuitability for Accession to the EU
BLOOMBERG: Lazari Kozmaoglu, Istanbul's last pork butcher, takes a break from a two-hour backgammon session to recall the days he spent slicing bacon instead of rolling dice.

Eight workers used to rush in and out of the cutting room, placing wrapped meat in refrigerators, Kozmaoglu, 63, recalls in his store in central Istanbul. Today the shop is down to its last two months of stock and attracts only a handful of customers.

Turkey's Islamist-rooted government has clamped down on the pork industry since 2004, closing all but two of the country's 25 pig farms and revoking slaughterhouse licenses. Kozmaoglu, unable to add to his meat supplies, spends most of his time shuffling paperwork as he seeks permission to reopen his abattoir.

"I don't know what I can do if they don't give it to me; this business is my life,'' Kozmaoglu says as he watches a news bulletin on Greek television.

He's one of about 2,000 ethnic Greeks remaining in Istanbul. Most Greeks left the city after Turkish mobs attacked their homes and workplaces in 1955. Others were expelled in 1964 after fighting between Greeks and Turks on Cyprus.

Before the 2004 crackdown, Kozmaoglu was one of four pork butchers in Istanbul. All of his competitors quit handling pigs after losing their slaughterhouse permits. The state granted Kozmaoglu temporary licenses to let him kill the swine on outlawed farms, but those have now been cut off, he says. Istanbul's Last Pork Butcher Fights Islamist Crackdown on Swine >>> By Firat Kayakiran | April 10, 2008

Hat tip: Dhimmi Watch

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Freedom of Speech Might Lead to Freedom of Belief
MEMRI: Following are excerpts from an interview with Saudi cleric Muhammad Al-Munajid, which aired on Al-Majd TV on March 30, 2008.

Muhammad Al-Munajid: Some of these heretics say: "Islam is not the private property of anyone." So what do they want? They say: "No sect has a monopoly on Islam." So what do they want? They say: "We want to issue rulings." Someone who is ignorant, who does not know any Arabic, or who has no knowledge of Islamic jurisprudence wants to issue rulings?! They say: "We reinterpret the texts." There is a very dangerous conspiracy against the religion of Islam in newspapers and in what these people say. A journalist, or one of those lowlifes, wants to... These people are a mixture of Western, local, and imported ideologies, but they want to express their views with regard to religious rulings. This is the prerogative of religious scholars, not of ignorant people, the prerogative of knowledgeable people, not of fools or heretics.

[...]

The problem is that they want to open a debate on whether Islam is true or not, and on whether Judaism and Christianity are false or not. In other words, they want to open up everything for debate. Now they want to open up all issues for debate. That's it. It begins with freedom of thought, it continues with freedom of speech, and it ends up with freedom of belief. So where's the conspiracy? They say: Let's have freedom of thought in Islam. Well, what do they want? They say: I think, therefore I want to express my thoughts. I want to express myself, I want to talk and say, for example, that there are loopholes in Islam, or that Christianity is the truth. Then they will talk about freedom of belief, and say that anyone is entitled to believe in whatever he wants... If you want to become an apostate – go ahead. Fancy Buddhism? Leave Islam, and join Buddhism. No problem. That's what freedom of belief is all about. They want freedom of everything. What they want is very dangerous.

[...]

Freedom of thought, within some constraints, is blessed. Islam calls for thinking, for interpretation, and for the use of the mind. But as for freedom of heresy, which allows anyone to criticize whatever he wants in Islam, saying, for example, that he does not like the punishment for apostasy, that he doesn't like the punishment for drinking alcohol, or that he does not like the punishment of stoning adulterers – this is barbarism. They ask: Why should a thief have his hand chopped off? Some of them say that this is "too much." Two-three much on you and your rotten mind. If you abolish this punishment, you will see the rise in thefts. On the other hand, people feel their property is secure because of this punishment. [Source: MEMRI: Saudi Cleric Muhammad Al-Munajid Warns: Freedom of Speech Might Lead to Freedom of Belief]

Hat tip: Jihad Watch

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