Mix Government and Religion, Women Lose

There's a great article in the New York Times that once again illustrates why government and religion should never mix.

In Pakistan, anyone who advocates equal rights for women can be, and often is, accused of blasphemy. And that, my friends, is a capital crime! Gloria Steinem, watch out! You'd get the death penalty if you tried your feminism stuff in Pakistan!

Women's rights are almost nonexistent in this religion-dominated country, just as they were in America and Europe when religion was in charge. But Pakistan seems to be even worse: a woman who is raped can't go to the police because she'll be accused and convicted of infidelity.

In most countries, civil rights violations spawn citizen protests. India threw off British rule, Martin Luther King inspired America's Blacks to demand their civil rights,

Why Islamic Extremists Kill Their Critics

The other day I was seriously wondering how Taliban leaders including Osama bin Laden have been able to hide in Pakistan for so long. The Taliban are waging war on Pakistan, trying to overthrow the legitimate government, so why do the Pakistanis support and hide them?

Well, today I got my answer. This is the same country that imposes the death penalty for blasphemy. The Taliban supporters put Islam first, and their country second.

Any country that has a law imposing the death penalty for blasphemy is still in the dark ages. Their Muslim fundamentalism is so extreme that they are blinded to what's happening. They'd rather foster terrorism than make their country a civilized place. They'd rather have war and murder than let some random nobody say something bad about their religion.

I really don't understand how anyone can care about blasphemy. If some random guy I've never met before stopped me on the street and told me "You're ugly!", I'd just walk on by. Why do I care what he thinks? The guy is nobody.

If instead I took his insult seriously, I'd be doing two stupid things. First, I would be showing him that I cared about his opinion. And second, I'd be lending credibility to his authority to make such a claim.