Islam: Losing My Religion

THE ECONOMIST: A small but growing number of Muslims are abandoning their faith

IDENTIFYING Muslims who have renounced their faith is tricky. Few are open about doing so, even in safe and secular Britain. But among the country’s Bangladeshis and Pakistanis, who overwhelmingly describe themselves as Muslims, the numbers are growing, albeit from a tiny base. According to official statistics, between 2001 and 2011 the proportion of Bangladeshis who say they have no faith has more than tripled, from 0.4% to 1.4%. For Pakistanis it has doubled, from 0.5% to 1.1%. Some who explicitly identify as ex-Muslims are becoming more vocal. Groups such as the Council of Ex-Muslims in Britain (CEMB), set up in 2007, are helping.

Former Muslims’ reluctance to admit to their lack of faith rarely stems from a fear of violence, as in countries such as Sudan where laws make apostasy punishable by death. Rather the worry in Britain is about the social stigma, moral condemnation and ostracism that follows, says Simon Cottee of the University of Kent, who has written a book on the subject.

Many do not divulge their unbelief to their families, let alone the wider community. At events organised by the CEMB, some come straight from the mosque. Women say they continue to wear their veil at home to conceal their change of heart. Those who are openly godless often use the language of gay rights, talking about “coming out” to those close to them. » | From the print edition | Friday, May 09, 2015

David Cameron on Track to Remain PM after Electoral Triumph

THE GUARDIAN: Conservatives head towards overall majority in UK general election as swings to Labour fail to materialise and Lib Dems face huge losses


David Cameron is on course to secure an astonishing electoral triumph as the Conservative party headed towards an overall majority and unseated a raft of senior political opponents including the Labour shadow chancellor, Ed Balls, and the Lib Dem business secretary, Vince Cable.

The result – devastating Labour and the Liberal Democrats, and leaving Scotland a near one-party state under the control of the Scottish National party – probably represents the biggest surprise in a general election since 1945.

Cameron is to head to Buckingham Palace at 12.30pm to meet the Queen and is expected to make a statement on his return to Downing Street. » | Patrick Wintour and Rowena Mason | Friday, May 08, 2015

VE Day Celebrations (1945)

VE Day Celebrations (1945). A Day that Shook the World. The war in Europe is declared over as celebrations break out across Britain.

A Day That Shook The World is the classic series that recalls the days of the 20th century that proved to be era-defining and pivotal in the course of modern history.

Germany Today: Post-World War II Reconstruction, 1947

«Qui est Charlie?» Unbequemer Blick auf Frankreichs Gesellschaft

Nach den Attentaten in Paris sind am 11. Januar Millionen Menschen auf die Strasse gegangen. «Je suis Charlie», skandierten sie. Für den Soziologen Emmanuel Todd war bei den Massen aber wenig Geschlossenheit spürbar. Manche verdächtigt er gar, ein falsches Spiel zu spielen. Das macht er in seinem neuen Buch zum Thema.

Allah Knows Best! Only Allah Can Set the Price of Oil, Claims Saudi Minister as Concerns Rise over Iran Oil

According to Ali Al-Naimi, "no one can set the price of oil"

DAILY EXPRESS: SAUDI Arabia's oil minister has claimed that only Allah knows whether oil prices will continue to fall.

Ali Al-Naimi said that "no one can set the price of oil – it's up to Allah."

The country has decided not to cut its levels of production – and prices could fall further if Iranian crude oil returns to the market.

Sanctions on Iran may be lifted as part of an international nuclear deal.

But Al-Naimi said: "I am not worried about Iranian crude, nor will I try to predict what the price is.

"If I were to predict, I would be somewhere else, gambling." » | Tom Parfitt | Wednesday, May 06, 2015

Extremists Order East London Muslims to Boycott Election Vote in Tower Hamlets

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Radicals accused of intimidating Muslims with campaign that claims voting is un-Islamic

Voting in the General Election was embroiled in controversy with some Muslims told not to vote while others were allegedly ordered by spiritual leaders to back Labour.

Muslims in east London were warned not to vote in what has been branded an “intimidating” and “covert” campaign.

Flyers claiming that “Islam is the only real working solution for the UK” were stuck to the wind shields of residents’ cars in Tower Hamlets, a borough that has previously been riddled with election fraud.

The leaflets also warned that voting for “man-made law” was a sin, akin to idol worship, and that “democracy is a system whereby man violates the right of Allah”. » | Lyndsey Telford, Robert Mendick and Gregory Walton | Thursday, May 07, 2015

Assad Using Chemical Weapons Again? US Eyes New Allegations, Consequences Unclear

FOX NEWS: Allegations are mounting that the Assad regime has returned to using chemical weapons against Syrian rebels and civilians, nearly two years after the government agreed to dismantle their stockpile.

The suspicions have the Obama administration calling for an immediate U.N. investigation into the "abhorrent acts" -- though it remains unclear what, if any, punishment Bashar Assad might face if formally blamed for the string of alleged chlorine gas attacks.

One western U.N. diplomat told Fox News the situation has become "unacceptable" in Syria.

"There is mounting evidence of repeated chlorine attacks," the diplomat said. » | FoxNews.com | Thursday, May 07, 2015

Protester Being Prosecuted for Shouting 'F*** the King' Hopes to Call Dutch Monarchs as Witnesses

THE INDEPENDENT: The royal palace was spray painted with the insult in protest at the decision to prosecute

An anti-monarchy campaigner hopes to call the Dutch king and queen to the witness box, having been prosecuted for shouting “f*** the king” at a rally in Amsterdam last year. Abulkasim Al-Jaberi was arrested at a demonstration against Zwarte Piet for shouting “f*** the king, f*** the queen and f*** the monarchy.”

Al-Jaberi is due to appear in court in Amsterdam on May 27 after refusing to accept an out of court settlement including a €500 fine. The action taken against him has caused anger on Twitter and vandalism to the Royal Palace.

He is being prosecuted for lèse-majesté, a crime which specifically refers to offences against the dignity of the monarch, for which the maximum sentence is five years in prison. » | Louis Doré | Thursday, May 07, 2015

Lithuania Attacks Russian 'Liberators' ahead of Victory Day Celebrations

Lithuania's President Dalia Grybauskaite

THE DAILY TELEGRAPH: Dalia Grybauskaite, president of the tiny Baltic republic, launches scathing attack on Russia ahead of Victory Day parade

Lithuania’s president has launched a scathing attack on Russia on the eve of V-E Day, warning that "we cannot accept the blackmail of an aggressor who calls itself the victor of Europe but who has launched a new war against Ukraine."

Dalia Grybauskaite, president of the tiny Baltic republic that ended the Second World War under Soviet rule, has been one of Russia’s harshest critics since the advent of the Ukraine crisis.

"Those who call themselves the conquer[or]s and liberators of Europe have begun a new war in Europe against a sovereign state wishing only to decide its own future," she said in an interview for the Polish press. » | Matthew Day in Warsaw | Thursday, May 07, 2015

Islam's 'Reformation' Is Already Here and It's Called 'ISIS'

CHRISTIAN POST – OPINION: The idea that Islam needs to reform is again in the spotlight following the recent publication of Ayaan Hirsi Ali's new book, Heretic: Why Islam Needs a Reformation Now. While Ali makes the argument that Islam can reform—and is in desperate need of taking the extreme measures to do so—many of her critics contend that Islam is not in need of reform.

The one argument not being made, however, is the one I make below—namely, that Islam has already "reformed." And violence, intolerance, and extremism—typified by the Islamic State ("ISIS")—are the net result of this "reformation."

Such a claim only sounds absurd due to our understanding of the word "reform." Yet despite its positive connotations, "reform" simply means to "make changes (in something, typically a social, political, or economic institution or practice) in order to improve it."

Synonyms of "reform" include "make better," "ameliorate," and "improve"—splendid words all, yet words all subjective and loaded with Western connotations.

Muslim notions of "improving" society can include purging it of "infidels" and "apostates," and segregating Muslim men from women, keeping the latter under wraps or quarantined at home. Banning many forms of freedoms taken for granted in the West—from alcohol consumption to religious and gender equality—is an "improvement" and a "betterment" of society from a strictly Islamic point of view.

In short, an Islamic reformation will not lead to what we think of as an "improvement" and "betterment" of society—simply because "we" are not Muslims and do not share their first premises and reference points. "Reform" only sounds good to most Western peoples because they naturally attribute Western connotations to the word. » | Raymond Ibrahim, CP Op-Ed Contributor | Thursday, May 07, 2015

The Cartoon Wars

GATESTONE INSTITUTE: It is most important to keep on challenging these would-be censors, so that people with Kalashnikov rifles do not make our customs and laws. / One of the false presumptions of our time is that people on the political left are motivated by good intentions even when they do bad things, while people on the political right are motivated by bad intentions even when they do good things. / When people prefer to focus on the motives of the victims rather than on the motives of the attackers, they will ignore the single most important matter: that an art exhibition, or free speech, has been targeted. / It does not matter if you are right-wing or left-wing, or American, Danish, Dutch, Belgian or French. These particularities may matter greatly and be endlessly interesting to people in the countries in question. But they matter not a jot to ISIS or their fellow-travellers. What these people are trying to do is to enforce Islamic blasphemy laws across the entire world. That is all that matters.

ISIS appears to have inspired its first terrorist attack in the United States: in Garland, Texas. This item may have slipped the attention of many people because as is so often the case today, much of the reporting and commentary has got caught up on other, supplementary issues.

The supplementary issues are first, that the attack targeted a competition set up to show images of what people thought Muhammad may have looked like. Then, there is the identity of the people who organized the exhibition and spoke at it.

Before coming to this, let us just return to that main issue. Since January, the idea that ISIS-like groups can inspire people to carry out murderous attacks in Paris and Copenhagen has come to be accepted. But that this can happen in Texas, of all places, could yet have an even worse "chilling effect" on free speech than the attacks in Paris and Copenhagen. No European country has the constitutional commitment to free speech of the United States. And Texas is not stuck in the moral relativism and fearful multiculturalism of most European countries.

There will be a feeling, post-Garland, that if ISIS can strike in Texas, it can strike anyplace. The entire developed world is therefore a potential site for an attack from ISIS. Although no one will put his hands up and surrender, neither will anyone be likely to draw attention to himself by saying or doing anything that might displease such homicidal censors. » | Douglas Murray | Thursday, May 07, 2015

Charlie Hebdo Editor Seeks to Distance Newspaper From Anti-Islam Causes

THE NEW YORK TIMES: The top editor at Charlie Hebdo, the satirical Paris newspaper that was attacked four months ago by militant gunmen over its cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad, sought on Tuesday to reject attempts by right-wing activists to exploit that attack for their own agendas.

In an interview with members of the editorial board of The New York Times, the editor, Gérard Biard, disputed any analogies drawn between the Charlie Hebdo attack and the assault on Sunday against an art contest in Texas organized by Pamela Geller, a conservative activist and blogger.

“We have nothing to do with Pamela Geller’s work,” Mr. Biard said. “When Islam or the Prophet Muhammad jump out of the news, we comment on it, we mock it, maybe. But we are not obsessed about it.” » | Rick Gladstone | Tuesday, May 05, 2015

Exclusive: ‘Draw Muhammad’ Winner on Growing Up in Islam and Defeating the Jihad

BREITBART.COM: Breitbart News spoke with Bosch Fawstin, an accomplished artist, cartoonist, and anti-Jihad activist who won first prize at Sunday’s “Draw Muhammad” free speech event in Garland, Texas.

The event came under attack by AK47-weilding jihadists, who were neutralized by a police officer before they could commit mass murder against the free speech art display’s attendees.

Fawstin talked about his unique experience growing up in the Bronx as a Muslim, how his life changed after the 9/11 attacks, and he shared strategies to defeat the global jihadist movement. His artwork is featured throughout the interview. » | Jordan Schachtel | Wednesday, May 06, 2015

Pamela Geller vs Imam Anjem Choudary on Fox News, Hannity: 'You Want Her To Die!' | Full Interview

Muslim Hate Preacher Says Blogger Behind ‘Draw Muhammad’ Comp Should Die, On Live TV

The preacher was born in Welling, south-east London

DAILY EXPRESS: HATE preacher Anjem Choudary told the anti-Islam activist who organised the 'Draw Muhammad' event at the weekend she should be sentenced to DEATH, on live TV.

American right-wing blogger Pamela Geller clashed with British imam Choudhary just days after gunmen Elton Simpson, 31 and Nadir Soofi, 34, attempted to storm the controversial cartoon event in Garland, Texas.

Geller, 56, has received death threats and Islamic State militants have called for her "slaughter" since the exhibition.

During a heated live Fox News interview, host Sean Hannity questioned Choudhary on his views about the cartoon drawing event and if he thought Ms Geller should die.

The imam replied: "We’re not talking about Mickey Mouse or Donald Duck.

“You’re talking about people who deliberately had a competition to insult the prophet … knowing full well this carries the death threat in Iran.

"If you saw the cartoons that Charlie Hebdo drew [sic], you would understand the anger."

The cleric then went on to say that Geller would be fully aware that many Muslims consider blasphemy a crime that is worth capital punishment. » | Rebecca Perring | Thursday, May 07, 2015

Pamela Geller Takes Heat Over Shooting At Muhammad Drawing Contest

Pamela Geller and other hosts of the "draw Muhammad" contest were lucky to emerge unscathed after two Muslim gunmen attacked the event Sunday, but they haven't escaped the wrath of critics who insist the organizers share the blame for what happened. The two would-be jihadis were killed by police after charging the art exhibit and contest,…

Franklin Graham: ‘Folks In Garland Were Wrong’

Franklin Graham

WND: Faith leader says 'Draw Muhammad' event went too far

Franklin Graham, one of the world’s best-known Christian evangelists and the head of the nonprofit Samaritan’s Purse, said in a Wednesday morning Fox & Friends interview the “folks in Garland were wrong” to hold their “Draw Muhammad” event. ”

As a Christian, I don’t like it when people mock my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,” he said. “What this event was doing in Texas was mocking Islam. I disagree with [them].” Graham said today’s society is lacking in civility and the “folks in Garland were wrong” to further that tone. “I think we need to show respect and civility,” he said.

“We need to respect one another … and those that believe differently [from my faith], I’m not going to mock them.”

Graham then condemned the radicalized element of Islam for attacking those outside their faith, and doubled down on remarks made earlier – reported by WND – that the United States should put a hold on allowing anyone into this country who’s coming from a nation with known terrorist cells.

“It’s wrong to prefer violence, period,” he said. “The Muslims have no right to go around shooting people because someone mocks them. … We should not be allowing immigration into this country from any countries that have active terrorist cells.”

Just Tuesday, Graham weighed in on the Texas shootings with a Facebook post saying the god of Islam is not the “God of the Bible,” or of Christianity. » | Cheryl Chumley | Wednesday, May 06, 2015

CNN Promotes Sharia Blasphemy Laws (Alisyn Camerota vs. Pamela Geller)

Following the recent shooting at a Muhammad cartoon contest in Garland, Texas, media attention has once again focused on Islam and the First Amendment. In a discussion with Pamela Geller, CNN news anchor Alisyn Camerota noted the "fine line" between free speech and provocative speech. She went on to say that there should be a debate about the line between free speech and provocative speech. Apparently, CNN agrees with proponents of Sharia that criticizing Islam is beyond the scope of free speech (despite Camerota's claims to the contrary).

Robert Spencer on CNN's At This Hour Discussing the Jihad Shooting at AFDI/JW Free Speech Conference

On May 5, 2015, Jihad Watch director Robert Spencer appeared on CNN's At This Hour to discuss the jihad attack upon the AFDI/Jihad Watch Muhammad Art Exhibit and Cartoon Contest, and the necessity to defend the freedom of speech.