“Chicago: Supremacist Group Conspires Against Rights”

Greetings.

Jewish date:  5 Ṭeveth 5770 (Parashath Wayyiggash).

Today’s holiday:  Tuesday of the Fourth Week of Advent (Roman Catholicism).

Worthy causes of the day:  “Alliance for Climate Protection | Hold big polluters accountable” and “Cut Global Warming Pollution from Big Emitters - The Petition Site”.

Topic 1:  “Chicago: Supremacist Group Conspires Against Rights”.  This article deals with a conflict of freedom of religion with the limits of freedom of speech.  The Islamist group Ḥizb ut-Taḥrir America has been preaching that any Muslim who leaves Islam should be killed.  And the article notes that Muslims in the United States have actually put this into practice multiple times.  The author of the article is, naturally, outraged, complaining of the failure of the government to do anything about it.  Whether the views Ḥizb ut-Taḥrir America are valid in Islam is a matter for Muslim scholars to decide, but the author of the article does make a valid point about freedom of religion, that Ḥizb ut-Taḥrir America is crossing a line.  We live in a society which has collectively decided to give everyone freedom of religion.  This includes the freedom to believe and practice something other people do not approve of.  This has nothing to do with acceptance or everyone being equally right.  The government is not in the business of being the ultimate arbiter of truth, and we prefer keeping it that way.  As such, we have learned to at least barely tolerate each other and thus make each others’ lives a bit easier.  Ḥizb ut-Taḥrir America is trying to live by an incompatible set of rules, working to impose Islam on everyone, whether they want to live under planetary Islamic dominion or not, and promoting killing people who decided they did not want to be Muslims.  The contradiction is real, and the author of the article is right that the US government should intervene if they want to guarantee freedom of religion.

Topic 2:  For today’s religious humor:  “Hark da”:

Apparently these cats are having a little trouble with the lyrics...

Peace.

Aaron