On a night unlike many others, I took a taxi home. I had approached the first cab I saw outside of the bar, but the driver didn’t have a credit card machine and I didn’t have cash. The second cab I approached didn’t want to go to my neighborhood. The third driver agreed to it. […]
Many people are outraged at the Swiss people’s decision to ban minarets from their skylines, a decision made by referendum.
From the outset, let me say that I am wholly opposed to this decision, just as I am opposed to the burqa ban in France, Egypt’s ban on building churches, several Muslim countries’ bans on conversion, and Saudi Arabia’s banning of female hair. I fundamentally believe in the right of anyone to practice their religion, anywhere (though I certainly prefer they keep it to themselves). I should also say that two wrongs don’t make a right: I’ve heard plenty of statements along the lines of “good for the Swiss, they’re standing up to Islam” from people who, were the tables turned, would call inequality if a majority-Muslim nation does the same thing.
I tried to post an article on my Facebook wall; the piece was a brief Boston Globe column about alternatives to the F-word when the F-word feels repetitive or obscene. I commented that readers might also enjoy a different piece (from best of Cragslist, no less) about the “c-word” and told them they could find it on my Google shared items, but did not add a link. In other words, I used no profanity nor did the Globe article. And yet, Facebook would not allow me to post it.