waking-up-the-islamist-deniers

By Anthony Furey ,QMI Agency

First posted: Tuesday, May 20, 2014 07:21 PM EDT | Updated: Tuesday, May 20, 2014 07:27 PM EDT

Iranian actress and member of the Feature films Jury Leila Hatami poses as she arrives for the screening of the film "Le Meraviglie (The Wonders)" at the 67th edition of the Cannes Film Festival in Cannes, southern France, on May 18, 2014. AFP PHOTO / VALERY HACHE

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Some people just aren’t like us. This is especially applicable in the divide between the Islamic world and the West.

But for many do-gooders it just can’t be true. Surely, they tell us, it’s actually just a case of misunderstandings. If only we convene more multi-faith roundtables, unity will prevail.

Thankfully, several recent stories are waking up the deniers.

First there’s Iranian actress Leila Hatami in hot water back home for kissing a guy on the cheek at the Cannes film fest in France on the weekend.

"Those who attend international events should take heed of the credibility and chastity of Iranians, so that a bad image of Iranian women will not be demonstrated to the world," said a government official.
Then we have Brunei imposing a penal code that ranges from fines for missing prayers to death by stoning for gays.

In typical Hollywood fashion, west coast celebs only take up a cause when they can make it about them.

Hence why they probably wouldn’t have noticed this story had it not been for the fact their beloved Beverly Hills Hotel is owned by the government of Brunei.

As the sultan made clear on April 30: “The decision to implement the (penal code) is not for fun but is to obey Allah’s command as written in the Qur'an.” All clear? No more Rock Hudson tanning poolside!

Unable to keep their eye on the ball (Islamic countries aren’t progressive), the narrative is now about those arguing a boycott (Jay Leno) vs. those who say it hurts the hotel's staff (Russell Crowe).
Then there’s the kidnapping of 275 Nigerian schoolgirls by militant group Boko Haram.

Sadly, similar atrocities happen all over the Islamic world. But if you bring them up, no one believes you.

Polite society only acknowledges them once they’ve been vetted by the likes of Michelle Obama, who got behind the #BringBackOurGirls campaign.

The problem is now they’re going to have to face some other hard truths. We trip over ourselves in a rush to say of course “the vast majority” of the Muslim world is not like this.

Only a sliver of a percentage of Muslims actually have views irreconcilable with our own, they wager. Time to end such wishful thinking.

By this logic, Boko Haram should be eradicated, no problem. Just practice a little hashtag activism, send over another $10 million into the foreign aid black hole and good ol’ equality will reign supreme in Nigeria.

There’s one problem: Boko Haram is more popular than we’d care to admit.

Nigerian soldiers told Associated Press that some in their ranks are fighting alongside the militants. The president has even said he fears Boko Haram has infiltrated every level of government.

According to a comprehensive report by the Pew Research Center, 71% of Nigerian Muslims (who make up half the country) support the implementation of Sharia, Boko Haram’s main objective.
And did no one stop to think that if someone kidnaps hundreds of girls to sell that must mean there is a market to sell them? It’s estimated around 700,000 are currently enslaved in Nigeria.

That the religion of peace is far from that isn’t some fabricated right-wing talking point. It’s backed up by statistics.

Surely the sultan of Brunei is just a singular toad? Nope -- 95% of Southeast Asians believe homosexuality is wrong and 76% support execution for those who leave Islam.

It would be lovely if everyone had the same views on equality as we did. But they don’t.
The silver lining? I just checked Expedia. Rooms at the BHH are now a steal.