I’ve two examples to talk about here … both are examples of intolerance, both have a religious theme, and both illustrate the problems you can get tangled up in when you let religious considerations interfere with the legal process. One is an attempt to legislate some support for an irrational belief, and the other is an attempt to legislate against an irrational belief, what they both have in common is that they are an attempt to dictate how individuals should behave.
You can probably guess, but they both involve Islam … gasp!! … what a surprise that is these days.
First up we have the story about driving in Saudi. As I’m sure many of you are aware, it is illegal for woman to drive in Saudi. Ah yes, a real example of how truly progressive Islam can be when granted a free reign. In fact, its not just a driving issue, this is Islamic Sharia law in full swing; woman cannot vote, cannot be elected, and can never be independent because it is mandated that they must have a male guardian … In essence, woman are most or less a subservient class of slaves with no rights, and its the law because the clerics say so. (and I’ve not even mentioned the mandatory dress code, or that in public men and woman are completely segregated).Make no mistake, “It’s the culture, not the religion,” is a Saudi saying, but that claim is complete bollocks, its the clerics who impose these rules.
To read more about the complete lack of rights for woman in Saudi, you can click here.