Pakistan to monitor Google and Yahoo for 'blasphemy'

[CosmicSpork]

Pakistan will start monitoring seven major websites, including Google and Yahoo, for content it deems offensive to Muslims.

YouTube, Amazon, MSN and Hotmail will also come under scrutiny. A further 17 less well-known sites will be blocked altogether.

In May, Pakistan banned access to Facebook after the social networking site hosted a competition to draw the prophet Muhammad.

A court ruled the contest blasphemous.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/10418643.stm

This makes me laugh :lol:

 

[MRaverz]

There was a competition? :shock:

Those crazy Pakistanis.

 

[Pennies for Thoughts]

Facebook, which was banned because of its Draw Mohammad Day page and later reinstated, has kept the page up yet didn't even make the latest cut.

In more speculative moments I imagine the top sites getting it together and banning Pakistan. It seems plausible that if they were to collectively refuse access from Pakistani servers, they could light a fire under the country's moderate Muslims that we hear about, but never seem to hear from.

 

[SagansHeroes]

I have a problem with people calling on the "moderate" Muslims to speak out... I mean we have to remember that in their country they don't have the freedoms we do. If you protest against your president, or call the pope a Paedophile, the worst you get is fox news calling you a loon (unless it's a democratic president)... I think going against their religion/rulership in their country(s) has slightly more dire consequences, most notably death.
I mean Ayan Hirsi Ali "converted" to Atheism after making it to the Netherlands and was outspoken against Islam, and she has to be hidden by witness protection because of all the death threats, which in part was due to her involvement in a controversial short film criticising Islam.

 

[JustBusiness17]

Pakistan will start monitoring seven major websites, including Google and Yahoo, for content it deems offensive to Muslims.

YouTube, Amazon, MSN and Hotmail will also come under scrutiny.

For those of you who don't speak Urdu, allow me to translate...

The Pakistani theological dictators are butt hurt because the idol they use to manipulate the masses has been mocked. In an attempt to look like they are doing something about it, they have named some popular websites to a watch list. This is sure to impress their ignorant flock.

Ironically, any efforts actually put forward by religious officials will be conducted using the basic search functions on these very same websites while communicating via their hotmail accounts.

 

[Baranduin]

I have a problem with people calling on the "moderate" Muslims to speak out... I mean we have to remember that in their country they don't have the freedoms we do. If you protest against your president, or call the pope a Paedophile, the worst you get is fox news calling you a loon (unless it's a democratic president)... I think going against their religion/rulership in their country(s) has slightly more dire consequences, most notably death.
I mean Ayan Hirsi Ali "converted" to Atheism after making it to the Netherlands and was outspoken against Islam, and she has to be hidden by witness protection because of all the death threats, which in part was due to her involvement in a controversial short film criticising Islam.

That's not an excuse for the moderate muslims settled in western countries. They could protest without the restrictions you say. They don't. They protect their fellow believers, and indeed protest if our governments try to take measures or launch a protest.

They add up to some millions in Europe, some of them having no link with those countries other than religion; they could use the freedoms we enjoy here to officially condemn those measures. That would settle a precedent, having other muslims defending freedom of speech, that could be a wedge for reason into those countries (yeah, sure, they'd notruescotman it in some places; but in others it could make a difference). And certainly that would improve their image.
But they don't do that. They shelter the most extremist muslims, they shelter their religion from criticisms. They stay in silence, tacitly accepting those things. As far as I'm concerned, they're accomplices.

That's what I take when there's a call on the moderate muslims. It's not on the repressed muslims, but on the ones that live among us.

 

[SagansHeroes]

That's what I take when there's a call on the moderate muslims. It's not on the repressed muslims, but on the ones that live among us.

First off, that's why I gave the example of Ayan Hirsi Ali, she did protest Islam in the Netherlands, she made a critical short film with a director who was brutally murdered on a main street, she got death threats, and now lives in permanent witness protection in the US....

Second, if you moved to a different country where you were more free, but criticised your former country/ruler/religion where in that country such punishment was death... and some if not all of your family still lived in that country, not only are you risking their lives, but you can most likely never go back to your home country for fear of incarceration/torture and possibly even death.

I know it sucks that there are so little moderates represented in our popular media, but the situation is much different for them than for us. It's not so clear cut as "you should be able to call your fellow/ex people that they're being stupid". It's easy to say such things from the outside... But it's like asking "why didn't more moderate people protest against Nazism/Communism in their own countries" because the gestapo/KGB would get you and/or your family. It's easy in hindsight to paint them all with the "you enabled this by doing nothing" brush... but sometimes there isn't really anything you can do that isn't essentially suicide, even though you may disagree.

 

[Case]

First off, that's why I gave the example of Ayan Hirsi Ali, she did protest Islam in the Netherlands, she made a critical short film with a director who was brutally murdered on a main street, she got death threats, and now lives in permanent witness protection in the US...

Ayaan Hirsi Ali is not Muslim, not even a moderate one. She's an Atheist, or Infidel, if you will. (link)

Offtopic: Since he isn't a Muslim... is Fidel Castro an Infidel, too? :?

 

[SagansHeroes]

First off, that's why I gave the example of Ayan Hirsi Ali, she did protest Islam in the Netherlands, she made a critical short film with a director who was brutally murdered on a main street, she got death threats, and now lives in permanent witness protection in the US...

Ayaan Hirsi Ali is not Muslim, not even a moderate one. She's an Atheist, or Infidel, if you will. (link)

Offtopic: Since he isn't a Muslim... is Fidel Castro an Infidel, too? :?

I mean Ayan Hirsi Ali "converted" to Atheism

I already stated this in my previous post.

 

[Baranduin]

[...]

You're assuming that most muslims come from extremely islamic countries and left or have family there.
1) You're forgetting about third-generation-muslims in western countries. They descend from muslims settled before the emancipation of the old colonies, sons of ie, argelians in France or saharauis in Spain, that either married with other descendants of immigrants or their husband/wife converted to Islam. The closest relatives left in the former colonies would be from great-grand-parents to cousins in second degree.
2) You're forgetting about muslims coming from non-extremist countries, like Turkey or Bosnia. No relatives in danger. Indeed, they could protest in their own countries without risk of even prison.
3) You're forgetting about former christians, atheists, or whatever religion, converted to Islam in western countries.
4) You're forgetting about the power of Anon. They don't have to be public figures and have their names and surnames identified. They can hide behind a mask or within the herd. Letters to newspapers, public anonymous manifestations, DMD, that sort of activism can be done without revealing too much. You don't see this often, either.

I'm not surprised that immigrants from Pakistan or Argelia don't speak publicly and in first line against Islam. But they're not the only muslims around here, and indeed they're not precisely the most moderate sector*. It's all the other muslims who should be outspoken against it, and encourage those who fear to be outspoken. But you don't see them. You didn't see them defending our right in DMD, you won't see their outrage about how much this damages the image of the muslims and how against what the Islam is it is**, and you won't see them doing a shit. But they had no trouble to express their exasperation when minarets were forbidden in Switzerland, or because we were daring to commit blasphemy, or because our governments are debating in which circumstances is legal the use of hiyab, niqab or burqa.

If they're so worried about their image and our vision of Islam, the starting point for them should be to condemn (and mock) those acts. How many of them, having none of the troubles you've just expressed, are doing so?


* Not saying that there are no moderate immigrants. Indeed, some of them are moderate, and surely they could, if they wanted, make noise and be heard if they wanted while remaining in the anonymity.
** If most Christians can twist the Bible to prove the points they defend, Muslims can do the same with the Quran.


PS. And I'm not surprised that not even our national, muslim political parties protest against these things, even when their leaders are as nationals as anyone else. But they should, if they pretend to represent our countries and constitutions. Shame on them, too.

 

[Pennies for Thoughts]

There are some interesting points here so I started a thread in "Religion and Irreligion" titled "Are Islam and Reform Incompatible."

 

[Ulquiorra_Schiffer]

It's quite sad to see such an act of censorship.

If an idea wishes to prove it's worth in the 21st century, then it must be open to public scrutiny and ridicule.