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| Witchvox Chapter: Wren's Nest News | Chapter Page Views: 59,684,684 |
 Foreign, Domestic Anger At Swiss Minaret Ban Author: Frank Jordans, AP Source: Boston Globe (MA) Title: FOREIGN, DOMESTIC ANGER AT SWISS MINARET BAN A top Swiss official said Monday that voter approval of a ban on minarets next to mosques could be struck down in court, as critics at home and abroad swiftly condemned the vote, saying it undermined the country's liberal, secular image. Legal experts have questioned whether the ban on the Islamic towers used for the call to prayer is compatible with the country's constitution and international human rights law. Justice Minister Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf said it would come into force immediately, but indicated that it could be overturned. The vote brings the focus of an Europe-wide debate over Islam and immigration to Switzerland, and is a serious slap in the face for the government, which campaigned against it and was largely take by surprise. | |
| Community Thoughts: There are 11 comments posted | Reverse Sort |
| I... | Dec 2nd. at 2:27:01 am EST |
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Corax (Glendale, Arizona) - Email Me have mixed feelings on this. On one hand, I believe that government shouldn't get involved with religion, so that's the case for the minarets. One the other hand, who wants some guy up in a tower yowling at the top of his lungs five times a day? The trouble with islam is the same as the trouble with xianity and radical judaism - the concept of exclusivity. They all INSIST that THEY are the one and only true religion. "Live and let live" is out and "Do it MY way or else" is in. Monotheism is the most evil, bloodsoaked concept ever invented. Maybe they should make a deal with the muslims - you get your minarets IF you agree to not walk around in burkas, turbans or any other distinctly muslim garb AND you agree to absolutely NO proseltyzation, EVER. |
| Minaret... | Dec 1st. at 8:13:14 pm EST |
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Winddragon (anderson, South Carolina) - Email Me has nothing to do with ballet? Dang. I personally like minarets and bell towers. If it's religion that's feared then stomp it out. Leave the minarets and bell towers. |
| A Minor But Symbolic Point | Dec 1st. at 12:32:46 am EST |
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Arie Willow (Sydney, New South Wales) - Email Me It seems a minor point in some ways. Where I live most churches are built without bell towers as they have been prohibited from ringing bells in residential areas for quite some time. By extension seeing as they are not allowed to call the faithful to prayer why built a minaret? On the broader point. Until such time as Islam lifts its ban on Apostasy, any attempts by an Islamic group to spread their faith should be illegal in the western democracies. |
| Adding: | Nov 30th. at 11:46:48 pm EST |
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Gina (Sacramento, California) - Email Me when I said "over there" I should have said "over there in any arabic and (goes without saying) moslem country". thanks |
| Makes Me Laugh | Nov 30th. at 11:44:46 pm EST |
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Gina (Sacramento, California) - Email Me I laugh when I read that the moslem clerics are speaking out about freedom of religion and how they're being discriminated against. I can't step off a plane over there without the religious police slapping me or worse for not covering my head! Where's MY freedom of religion? Where's the christian churches that openly proselytize? The Jewish Temples? The Temples to the Goddess? Did not think so....hypocrites. |
| I Am Amused... | Nov 30th. at 9:07:27 pm EST |
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RavenLight (Arlington, Virginia) - Email Me ...that the French condemned this, given the distinct anti-Islamic sentiment flowing out of THAT country. And it's not against Islam? That shows a lack of understanding. But then, how many Christian and Christian-raised white people have ever set foot in a mosque? |
| Architectural Details? | Nov 30th. at 7:18:05 pm EST |
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Ahr-Ohn (Bridgeport, Connecticut) - Email Me Never put the details into a Constitutional Action; it'll just get cluttered. Of course it's unchristian to build a minaret next to your mosque, since the guy would only be calling Mohammedans to Prayer, and leave the others feeling left out. Build a Bell Tower, real tall. Did they say the Minaret's had to be built seperate from the Mosque? How will that extend to Silos with Barns, or other towers attached to large buildings? To some degree, it's an aesthetic war, and the Constitution of Switzerland is given authority over public aesthetic display, but 57% is a slim margin, by which to block the government elbow. Do the international treaties have constitutional authority? This might take precedence. Arawn Graalrd |
| Both Sides... | Nov 30th. at 6:34:47 pm EST |
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bigcat (peoria, Illinois) - Email Me Are glaringly clear. The problem here is that the "expatriate immigrants" want to bring their entire culture with them when they come to another country and expect the country they move to to be exactly like home. While much can be accepted, many of their ways do conflict, so it is more than the minarets, much more, because if it were only that, there probably would be little if any argument at all. Frankly, I cannot blame the Swiss as sooner or later- a double standard would have to come into being-one for Europeans and one for the Muslims, and having pushed the envelope that far, it would still not be enough for many of the newcomers. There is such a thing as the difference between accepting a welcome and abusing it. |
| A Symptom... | Nov 30th. at 6:21:58 pm EST |
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kenneth (Des Plaines, Illinois) - Email Me The government is clearly embarassed by this, but rather than dismissing this as the rantings of the redneck contingent (which is some of it) , they need to look at the underlying issues. None of these nations, or the U.S., has had a frank discussion of national identity or what terms immigrants should be accepted on. The liberals have been too afraid to approach it for PC reasons and the other end of the spectrum has the unrealistic fantasy that all immigration can be stopped or turned back. They have invited or tolerated these immigrants for the sake of cheap labor and then simply stuck their heads in the sand when the real issues arise. Cracking down on Muslim architecture isn't going to touch the underlying problems and will probably eliminate whatever good will there was among moderate Muslims. |
| Immigration Versus Integration | Nov 30th. at 12:08:48 pm EST |
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Eran Rathan (Old Town, Maine) - Email Me I think this brings up a global issue of immigration versus integration that the US in particular has faced for a long time - that is, immigrants are welcome here, so long as they at least attempt to integrate with society. It is when they want to come to a country and be served by its institutions, educational, charitable, financial, without giving back in some way, they will remain an underclass; and with that resentment, anger, and poverty begin to grip the entire expatriate community. (And I use the term expatriate rather than immigrant for those who refuse to at least attempt to integrate - because regardless of location, based on thier actions they still identify as a citizen of their previous nation) . Eran Rathan |
| Two Europes? | Nov 30th. at 11:41:01 am EST |
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Zodiac (Waverly, Nebraska) - Email Me Just like here in the US, it's starting to look like there are two Europes. The first is the rich, upper class ruling elite class. The second is the less well to do. When Muslims riot, it happens in the second neighborhood. When there is Muslim violence, it happens in the second neighborhood. Muslim bullying goes on in the second neighborhood. If a bunch of liberal elites are going to just throw things out that they don't like, why bother even putting the question on the ballot? |
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