Is Universal Human Rights worth fighting for?

 It is difficult to believe that at the beginning of the 21^st century, at a time of so much intellectual and scientific development and, mostly, when universal human rights have been defined, we are still at grips with one ideology that wants all us to go back to the middle ages: Islam.

Islam is a supremacist political ideology that imposes to its followers (the ‘Muslims’, those who ‘submit’) total obedience to its credos. And since the ideology is believed to have been given by god himself, it becomes a religion in itself, and cannot be modified. Islam has a complete set of rules that regulate all aspects of life consolidated in the Sharia (Islamic Law).

Sharia Law cannot be modified. According to Sharia it is a crime to criticize Islam, its prophet or even Sharia itself. Followers of Islam see the prescriptions enshrined in the Sharia as good and as the right thing to do since they believe they were given by their deity (Allah).

Sharia law contravenes anything and everything we understand as human rights. Sharia laws include, among others: 

- Flogging, stoning, or hanging, of women when they are raped and do not have 4 witnesses to prove she was (sperm’s DNA or any other evidence does not count).

- Flogging, stoning, or killing of women if she commits adultery - the man gets a whipping.

- Clitoral circumcision either prescribed or suggested (depending on the school of Islamic jurisprudence) but never condemned.

- Amputation of digits, fingers on the hand; the full hand; parts of the arms, legs; crucifixion; for certain misdeeds such as theft, or distributing non-Islamic books (e.g., bibles) to Muslims.

- It is a crime to expose Muslims to any other religion.

-    If a Muslim leaves Islam he/she must be killed (Apostasy is a crime).

-    Penalties ranging from tongues been taken out to death for those who ‘slander Islam’, ‘slander Mohammed’ or ‘slender Sharia’ (slender here means to publically express a critical view).

- Banning of alcohol.

-    Depending on how fundamental things are, no music, no art, no singing is allowed.

-    Women have half the rights of a man in courts of law.

-    Daughters have (only) half the inheritance rights that sons have, while widows receive only an eighth of the inheritance.

-    Women will be dressed in either scarves or tents - depending on how fundamental either the man (father or husband) or the country is.

-    Women can be beaten.

- Men can divorce the wife; women cannot divorce the man.

-    Men can have up to 4 wives and he can divorce them as he sees fit - then marry again to bring the total number of wives up to 4. Men who travel can arrange ‘temporary marriages.’

-    Girls as young as 9 years old can marry; forced child marriages are allowed.

-    ‘Honor killings’ of the females who have ‘dishonored’ the family.

-    A Muslim woman can only marry a Muslim; Muslim men can marry non-Muslim woman.

-    If a non-Muslim woman marries a Muslim, their sons or daughters must be raised as Muslims.

- Women must obtain permission from husbands for daily freedoms;

- Anyone who is not a Muslim (dhimmi) must abide by Sharia law, but they have fewer rights than a Muslim woman and are basically living on the good graces of the Muslims.

- Dhimmi will pay the jizya (“protection”) tax, and that might even apply after death.

- Dhimmi will not build, or repair, their places of worship and they will not ring church bells. They will not show Bibles, or Torahs, in public. They will dress different so as to distinguish themselves as dhimmi. They will work the jobs the Muslims do not want to work. They will have no access to the social ladder.

- Homosexuality is a crime punishable by death.

(Two nice overviews of Sharia: Crime and Punishment in Islamic Law and Non-believers under Islamic Law)

These prescriptions vary from Islamic country to Islamic country. But all 57 country-members of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) have in their constitutions provision that Sharia is above the constitution.

Islamic countries, members of the OIC, are not signatories of the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. They came up with their own version, The Cairo Declaration on Human Rights in Islam, adopted and issued at the Nineteenth Islamic Conference of Foreign Ministers in Cairo, on 5 August 1990. The spirit of this declaration is summarized in its last two articles:

Article 24: All the rights and freedoms stipulated in this Declaration are subject to the Islamic Sharia.

Article 25: The Islamic Sharia is the only source of reference for the explanation or clarification to any of the articles of this Declaration.

In a nutshell: for Islam, Sharia reigns supreme.

Country members of the OIC have acted in block to undermine the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. They have acted as a block to impose their own agenda. It is ironic and sad to see countries likeSaudi Arabia, Iran, the Sudan and Libya leading the UN Human Rights Commission. Very recently, an unprecedented vote on freedom of expression marked the end of Universal Human Rights: “To report on instances in which the abuse of the right of freedom of expression constitutes an act of racial or religious discrimination ….”

The OIC is pressing the UN so that “defamation of Islam” is a crime bounding every country-member to impose that its constitution. If this passes, anything said about Islam that is perceived by Muslims as offensive will become a crime. Watch what you say!

According to Sharia, Islam is the last and final revelation from God. No need for other book, additional evidence, or further discussion. The matter is settled. If you have any doubts about it you cannot express it. If you do, it is insulting and blasphemous (i.e., it is a crime).

The IOC aims at a modern Islamic Caliphate.

Islam plays a game that has proved to bring all benefits for the spread of the ideology among Western countries. Depending on the situation it claims to be either a religion, or a culture or a race. Muslims demand and get respect wherever they go giving in return absolutely nothing, except to instill unwanted Islamic values into our societies.

Islam deserves not more but less respect. We need to give more respect to ourselves. We need to stop pretending that all cultures are equal, when they are not. Islamic culture is not equal to Western culture. Islamic culture encourages violence against women, against Jews, against all other non-Muslims and against homosexuals.  It sanctions polygamy and the marriage of young children with old men. Anyone in the West advocating those values would eventually go to jail. And considering the totalitarian agenda of radical Islam, these should be discouraged by legislation and rigorous application of the law.

Resisting Islam is not a phobia, an irrational fear, indulging to it is. Pretending that Islamic culture is equal to others is simply playing stupid besides ignoring the victims of the Islamic culture.

This must be said freely. If we cannot speak up freely what comes to our heart, then we have given up our freedom already and with it the freedom of future generations. We do not have this right. Quite the opposite, we should defend the freedoms that we inherited from those who even gave their lives for it. We are custodians of those freedoms. Let us defend them.

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I have collected a number of articles all available from the Internet just to provide you with a taste of what this ideology is, what it is based on, and what it has ready for women, for homosexuals and for those who do not accept it (either non-Muslims, the kafirs, or those who leave Islam, the apostates). 

A first hand encounter with Islam is available at this article, The Dead Hand of Islam, by Colin Maine. Then, there are three things you need to know about Islam.

A comprehensive discussion on Islam is provided by The Prophet of Doom, by Craig Win, in either audio or printable versions. (This is a long read but it is worthwhile at least listening to it, in its entirety or selected portions.)

A glance on the life of the founder of Islam, Mohammed, is provided by a few articles, starting with The life of Mohammed, followed by a discussion on Mohammed’s character, exploring his traces of a narcissist, a misogynist, a rapist, a pedophile, a lecher, a torturer, a mass murderer, a cult leader, an assassin, a terrorist, a mad man and a looter, as discussed by Ali Sina. Mohammed is a man of many myths, his life is an inconvenient truth. Mohammed was not a saint.

Battles raged by Mohammed: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4.

Muslims always complain they are target of hate speech, when in reality their holy book, the Qur’an, is hate speech. But isn’t the bible just as violent as the Qur’an?

From an Islamic perspective, Non-Muslims are guilty for rejecting the ideology. To deal with them, Islam has a series of “religious” prescriptions, which ascertain their inferior position, denies basic human rights and makes sure they are properly “punished in this life.” Can Infidels be Innocents?, asks Daniel Pipes. “No,” answers a British Muslim leader: Only Muslims are innocent (from BBC’s Hard Talk).

To be a non-Muslim in Islamic countries is to be a dhimmi. What means to be a dhimmi? (Copts in Egypt: example of present-day dhimmis)

Islam is misogynist. Kay Humowitz explains why Feminism is missing in Islam. 

Muslims cannot leave their faith. According to Islamic Law, if a Muslim leaves Islam the penalty is death (it conflicts with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 18, that says that “Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion” including the right to “change his religion or belief”). (See discussion on apostasy and examples)

Islam calls Muslims to wage Jihad. Jihad is not (only) an attempt to convert people to Islam by force. It is, more comprehensively, an attempt to expand and extend Islam until the whole world is under Muslim rule. The jihad is essentially a permanent state of hostility that Islam maintains against the rest of the world, with or without fighting for more sovereignty over more territory. Jihad is endless. Jihad is a duty, an obligation for all Muslims. There is a contrast between Christ (He who lives by the sword will die by the sword) with Muhammad (the sword is the key to heaven and hell). Christians who kill are ignoring the words of Christ. Muslims who kill are obeying Muhammad. Non-Muslims have been dropping Tears of Jihad since the 7^th century.

There are variations of Jihad, such as the demographic Jihad (for a few discussions read here, here and here). Read here the top ten reasons of why Islam is not a religion of peace.

The reward for those who die waging Jihad is Sex In Paradise. The Islamic paradise is a brothel. 

The Islamic prophet Mohammed was a slave trader, leading Muslims to be the greatest perpetrators of slavery in History. Read more on The Scourge of Slavery. (If you are interested in additional reading there is this article the discusses current state of slavery and Islam in Africa and a comprehensive discussion on Islam and Slavery)

If you ever talk to Muslims you will realise that no matter how “moderate” they may seem, they all play with (twisted) logic in similar ways. You will never see a Muslim going against another Muslim, even terrorists. They will always have excuses and apologies. Muslims seems to symptomatically play the same game.

To start addressing the problem we must understand Islam's violation of Human Rights.

The situation is bleak because due to immigration and higher birth rates, Muslims will be majority in several European countries within a few decades. And as they became majority, they will demand more Sharia.Europe is on the brink. Already in Great Britain, Sharia tribunals have biding authority. A few articles are listed below to introduce the problem: Dispatch from the Eurabian Front, by Thomas Landen, introduces the problem, followed by a discussion on whether  Europe will resist Islamization, by Daniel Pipes. The problem takes a wider dramaticity looking more like An Anatomy of Surrender, by Bruce Bawer. Can the West still be saved?, asks Serge Trifkovic.

The fact of life is that Islam is contrary to democracy. It is no surprise that most countries members of the OIC are dictatorial and the few that could be considered democratic have serious problems, failing to defend their minorities. A comprehensive discussion on whether Islam is compatible with democracy is presented by Fjordman.

A former Muslim, Ibn Warraq, shows his arguments why he thinks the West is Best. Another former Muslim, Abin Kassan, speaks about his former faith: An Apostate speaks.

How can we revert the current increase in fundamentalism that is sweeping throughout the Islamic world and penetrating into the non-Muslim world? The answer is by educating people on human rights, specially the children. The children are our future. “Educate the children and it won't be necessary to punish the adults,” said Pythagoras. But what is happening is that children are being indoctrinated more and more on the most fundamental flavours of Islam. Oil money, especially from the Saudis, have been invested in Madrassas (Islamic Schools) and mosques that have been opened at an amazing speed everywhere, most notably in Western countries (even where there are no Muslims around). Madrassas and Mosques become the centre of indoctrination, where hate literature flows free, under the protection of freedom of religion and multiculturalism (Islam knows how to play with our freedoms for its own agenda). A few articles on the indoctrination and spread of the ideology of hate is found in:

-      January 2005 report from the Center for Religious Freedom, "Saudi publications on Hate Ideology Fill American Mosques" (pdf here);

-      Children: Islamic Mickey, from Palestinian Media Watch.

The indoctrination of Children is happening even in the Western schools system, for example, in the US (here and here), in the UK, in Canada.

(By the way, one article on Honour killings in Canada)

What can we do? The best we can do is to educate ourselves. Let us discuss Islam and what it brings to non-Muslims. Let us tell our leaders about it. Let us demand that a line be drawn on multiculturalism and political correctness. We cannot be suicidal to a point where we muffle ourselves into cultural extinction, where the most important conquest of humanity, Universal Human Rights, be replaced by an old, medieval, authoritarian, anti-democratic and supremacist ideology, dressed as religion. We either curb the spread of Sharia or we will perish as civilization. 

What about the Muslims?

“Muslims are the first victims of Islam ... To liberate the Muslim from his religion is the best service that one can render him.” -Ernest Renan

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A list of interesting links (websites, videos and bibliography), which will keep you updated on what is going on, and will provide you with more reading material, are presented below.

Websites

-       Jihadwatch

-       The Religion of Peace

-       Faith Freedom International

-       Ummat al Kufar (AhmadsQuran3)

-       Answering Islam

-       Father Zakaria

-       Fjordman

-       MEMRI TV

-       Apostates of Islam

-       American Congress for Truth

-       Dr. Homa Darabi Foundation

-       The Free Copts

-       Walid Shoebat

Vídeos 

Stakelbeck on Terror - The Muslim Brotherhood in America (if the link is broken try here Part 1 and Part 2).

Video on Islam in France, in Sweden, in Minnesota, in New York City.

Why stoning is ok in Islam.

Learn a bit of Islamic imperialism, Islamic colonialism, Islamic genocide and Islamic crusades in these excellent videos by Occidental Soapbox: 

1. Intro, 
2. The occupation of Constantinople, 
3. Egypt, Iran and Iraq before conquered by Islam, 
4. Jerusalem, 
5. (current) Jihad in Thailand and what it means to us, 
6. Why did they hate us in 1783?, 
7. What is in a letter?

A video on the Islamic claim that there was nothing before Islam

A video on Islamic Slavery: Islam and Slavery.

Videos on today’s religious persecution here and here. Just follow the links to learn more.

Bibliography

A list of books that are worth reading:

1.   Books that provide a broad perspective on Islam and its Ideology

1. The Sword of the Prophet: Islam; History, Theology, Impact on the World, by Srdja Trifkovic
2. Lifting the Veil: The True Faces of Muhammad and Islam, by  I.Q. Al Rassooli
3. Why I Am Not a Muslim by Ibn Warraq

2.   On the life of Mohammed

1. The Truth About Muhammad: Founder of the World's Most Intolerant Religion, by Robert Spencer
2. The Life of Muhammad, by I. Ishaq

This book is the “official” biography of Mohammed and the most important book in Islam after the Koran. This book puts Mohammed’s  “revelations” (as written in the Koran) into a historical context. In this book we learn that Mohammed was a war lord, assassin, pirate, slave trader, sex pervert. In other words, the Islamic sources confirm that Mohammed was not a saint as we imagine saints to behave.

3.   On Jihad and the spread of Islam

a.   Islamic Jihad: A Legacy of Forced Conversion, Imperialism, and Slavery, by M. A. Khan

2. Islamic Imperialism: A History, by Efraim Karsh
3. The Legacy of Jihad: Islamic Holy War and the Fate of Non-Muslims, by Andrew G.M.D. Bostom and Ibn Warraq

4.   On Slavery

1. The legacy of Arab-Islam in Africa, by John Allembellah Azumah
2. Christian Slaves, Muslim Masters: White Slavery in the Mediterranean, the Barbary Coast and Italy, 1500-1800 (Early Modern History), by Robert C. Davis
3. Slavery in the Arab World, by Murray Gordon

5.   On Islamic anti-Semitism

1. The Legacy of Islamic Antisemitism: From Sacred Texts to Solemn History, Andrew G. Bostom and Ibn Warraq

6.   On Islamic Law

a.   Cruel and Usual Punishment: The Terrifying Global Implications of Islamic Law, by Nonie Darwish

7.   On the life of non-Muslims under Islam

1. The Dhimmi: Jews & Christians Under Islam by Bat Ye'or and David Maisel
2. The Decline of Eastern Christianity Under Islam: From Jihad to Dhimmitude : Seventh-Twentieth Century by Bat Ye'Or
3. The Myth of Islamic Tolerance: How Islamic Law Treats Non-Muslims by Robert Spencer

8.   On the connection of Islam with Nazism

1. Icon of Evil: Hitler's Mufti and the Rise of Radical Islam by David G. Dalin and John F. Rothmann

9.   On Takkyia (lying for the spread of Islam)

1. Brother Tariq: The Doublespeak Of Tariq Ramadan, by Caroline Fourest

10.        On the Islamization of the West

  a. The Grand Jihad: How Islam and the Left Sabotage America, by Andrew C   McCarthy

  b.   Stealth Jihad: How Radical Islam is Subverting America without Guns or Bombs, by Robert Spencer

  c. While Europe Slept: How Radical Islam is Destroying the West from Within, by Bruce Bawer

  d. Eurabia: The Euro-Arab Axis, by Bat Ye’or