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Well, now...
Reader comment on item: Europe's Burqa Wars
in response to reader comment: This is just show that Europeans have no tolerance and oppress women

Submitted by munineye (United States), Dec 18, 2008 at 03:34

Okay, if I (a woman) were to go to a Middle-Eastern country in a tank-top and shorts, I would be harassed and possibly arrested (depending on the country). If I so much as didn't wear headscarf in some countries, that would be enough. There is a strong cultural aversion to seeing a woman (un)dressed so. And since I want to keep my freedom, I would have to wear such things.

But a burqa? In Holland, I think it's quite intelligent and safe to ban them, if only for security reasons. It's not about your culture, it's about whether a security guard can see your face or not.

Laws about the burqa were designed to enslave and confine women, not to set them free, and any suggestion to the contrary is quite ludicrous. The current thought on veils, headscarves, and burqa are what are important, not what ancient Sumerians thought. That was before the Roman empire was even a twinkle in Greece's eye! Two thousand years before people knew the Americas existed!
Yes, it's lovely to know that veils were a visual signal for "harlot" in ancient times, but now they are a sign of oppresion and confinement.
Anyway. Eye for an eye, as the Babylonians would say. If I have to wear a headscarf or cover up in your country, you can show your face in mine. We each must follow as the customs dictate in order to fit in

Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened for relevance, substance, and tone, and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome, but comments are rejected if scurrilous, off-topic, vulgar, ad hominem, or otherwise viewed as inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the Guidelines for Comments. For informational purposes, we identify countries from which comments are sent.

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Reader comments (52) on this item

Title By Date
Burqa or not to Burqa [93 words]DavePOct 1, 2009 13:48
God bless that lady [9 words]dfwhite19438Sep 27, 2009 02:53
headscarf ban in vlaanderen(dutch speaking belgium) starting from 2010 [42 words]savingthewesternworldSep 16, 2009 12:41
Double standards [183 words]PrashantAug 30, 2009 23:54
↔ The thing about living in the EU [28 words]Straight_Talk_LuigiSep 1, 2009 00:56
Time to unveil [168 words]Rebecca MouldsAug 16, 2009 14:19
France downhill [67 words]StopoilJul 19, 2009 18:53
My theory of the Burqa [208 words]LynnJul 16, 2009 07:57
Sarkozy's Fatwa [26 words]Vinod GulatiJul 13, 2009 22:37
↔ legality of banning burka [244 words]G. VishvasJul 19, 2009 05:58
↔ Banning anything. [163 words]Vinod GulatiJul 20, 2009 12:17
↔ Gulatis naivete will be very costly [354 words]G.VishvasJul 21, 2009 10:44
↔ Hypocrisy just got BIGGER [252 words]KashayarSep 9, 2009 05:30
↔ competition about who is the bigger hypocrite [90 words]G.VishvasSep 9, 2009 21:28
↔ You win the competition hands on [206 words]KashayarSep 11, 2009 06:48
↔ You cannot unilaterally decide who wins [271 words]G.VishvasSep 12, 2009 20:53
↔ Common sense decides the winner [472 words]KashayarSep 14, 2009 07:44
↔ Intelligence includes common sense [884 words]G.VishvasSep 14, 2009 20:02
↔ Common sense is quite uncommon [801 words]KashayarSep 18, 2009 04:05
↔ discussing reasonably - how to do it [1448 words]G.VishvasSep 20, 2009 01:41
↔ It's true [33 words]Vermilion8Nov 5, 2009 13:32
Europe's Burqa Wars [192 words]moJul 12, 2009 06:34
Let us take a clue from passport pictures requirements [219 words]George PJul 12, 2009 00:57
UK's poll decision [49 words]James AureliusApr 1, 2009 00:57
Prostitutes had to wear hijab 7000 years ago [2007 words]n.krishnaDec 5, 2006 02:59
↔ Respect [43 words]NJ CastroNov 7, 2008 05:49
↔ Jews not included? [119 words]Hannah Y. GrauDec 7, 2008 16:20
↔ To Krishna [364 words]moJul 12, 2009 06:17
↔ Are you any better ? [80 words]KashayarSep 9, 2009 05:39
Why I am against the Burqa [214 words]Octavio JohansonNov 21, 2006 05:42
↔ An outrageous idea [43 words]Aisha GayleJul 21, 2009 16:02
This is just show that Europeans have no tolerance and oppress women [84 words]tarikurNov 18, 2006 15:34
↔ Praise be to the Dutch [53 words]Octavio JohansonNov 18, 2006 19:29
↔ The problem with tolerance [165 words]Octavio JohansonNov 19, 2006 14:17
↔ ⇒ Well, now... [238 words]munineyeDec 18, 2008 03:34
Europe's burqa wars [254 words]BrunoNov 18, 2006 14:24
↔ burqas [9 words]helloFeb 6, 2007 06:36
The march of progress [134 words]RajahOct 26, 2006 01:22
who is immoral? [86 words]AnitaOct 25, 2006 18:03
↔ Zero Tolerance for the Burqua [203 words]Octavio JohansonNov 19, 2006 05:12
↔ God bless the dutch [32 words]George PJul 12, 2009 01:03
Regarding Europe's Burqa Wars posted August 25, 2005 [140 words]MoraaFeb 25, 2006 20:09
↔ burkah the shield [52 words]saq from ukMay 1, 2006 17:55
↔ Typical [259 words]AaronMay 7, 2006 07:20
↔ Not a typical response !! [261 words]KhatibMay 11, 2006 15:20
↔ un-moral morals [43 words]susanSep 23, 2006 15:14
↔ saq, how naive... [47 words]susanSep 23, 2006 15:17
↔ advice on the superior muslim mothers [61 words]susanSep 23, 2006 15:20
↔ Questions [209 words]oswaldSep 24, 2006 01:48
↔ Only a man can [121 words]oswaldSep 24, 2006 06:05
↔ Musli mwomen better? [204 words]YnnatchkahDec 8, 2008 02:48
↔ What about .....? [92 words]ISisJul 13, 2009 02:30

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Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened for relevance, substance, and tone, and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome, but comments are rejected if scurrilous, off-topic, vulgar, ad hominem, or otherwise viewed as inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the Guidelines for Comments. For informational purposes, we identify countries from which comments are sent.

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