Islam
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Religion
Islam 101: The Very Basics
The first time I posted about Islam on the Internet, it was, oddly enough, on a Star Wars messageboard. One of the responses was PM that informed me of certain "facts" about Islam that were more than slightly off the mark. Things haven't changed so much in the ensuing decade, really, and perhaps have even gotten worse. Those opposed to…
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Activism
Why I’m Optimistic About Saving Face
Tonight at 8:30 EST, HBO will be airing an Oscar-winning documentary entitled Saving Face. The 40-minute film is about how Dr. Mohammad Jawad, a British-Pakistani plastic surgeon, travels to his country of origin to perform facial reconstructive surgery on women who are victims of acid attacks (warning: graphic images). When I first heard of the film, I was duly skeptical. Many films,…
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Religion
Zombie Muhammad vs. Zealot
Last Halloween, an atheist named Ernest Perce dressed up as Zombie Muhammad and joined a parade in Pennsylvania that also included a Zombie Pope and Zombie Jesus. A Muslim man, Talaag Elbayomy, decided that this was so offensive to him that he had to take action; he claimed that he thought there were laws against offending him. According to the officer who…
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Skepticism
The Myth of the Muslim Monolith
What supposedly Islamic traditions are actually specifically Arab cultural traditions, but not universally Muslim? This is quite the difficult question to answer, and not just slightly due to the fact that Muslims themselves vehemently disagree on the issue among themselves and work to promote a united front for the eyes of non-Muslims. Despite what many Muslims are wont to say…
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Religion
When The Feared Have the Most to Fear
Despite being an ex-Muslim, i.e. someone who learned so much about Islam that she was appalled enough to leave it, I’ve been accused of being an apologist for Islam. Incidents like the actions of the New York Police Department are what make me sound like I love Islam rather than have left it. A year ago, accusations began to fly…
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Religion
The Islam Dichotomy, Part 2: Sharia
Terrorism is one thing that non-Muslims fear about Muslims, but there is another Arabic word besides “jihad” that has begun to make the rounds. Is the implementation of Sharia in the United States a credible threat? Sharia in the UK The fear of Sharia taking over the West is one that stems from the words and actions of certain Western European…
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Religion
The Islam Dichotomy, Part 1: Terrorism
I’d like to see you weigh in on the Muslims are evil and scary vs. Muslims are no worse than Christians and demonizing them only helps Christians battle that occasionally flares up in the skeptical blogosphere. Is Islam a religion of peace or of leaving people in pieces? This question seems to be everywhere now. Between the neocon stance of…
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Religion
Virgins, Raisins, and WoW Players, Oh My
Being an ex-Muslim who goes to atheist meet-ups puts me into some very weird situations sometimes. I find myself in one of those in particular far more often than you think. I have to explain the concept of virgins. Well, not just any kinds of virgins, but the hour al-ayn, or houris, as the term is sometimes Anglicized. In plainer terms,…
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