The jihad against blasphemy starts with interfaith understanding

Irony pervades this lead paragraph:

Saudi Arabia, the oil-rich Islamic kingdom that forbids the public practice of other religious faiths, will preside Wednesday over a two-day U.N. conference on religious tolerance that will draw more than a dozen world leaders, including President Bush, Israeli President Shimon Peres and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

If I were writing the next paragraph I’d change “agreed for the first time” to “deigned.”

The event is part of a personal initiative by Saudi King Abdullah to promote an interfaith dialogue among the world’s major religions. The Saudi leader agreed for the first time to dine in the same room with the Israeli president at a private, pre-conference banquet Tuesday hosted by U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. But Ban hinted that the two leaders — whose governments do not have diplomatic relations — were not seated at the same table.

While the Washington Post quotes a number of critics of Saudi Arabia, it doesn’t mention what the real game is:

Saudi King Abdullah, who initiated this week’s special session, is quietly enlisting the leaders’ support for a global law to punish blasphemy – a campaign championed by the 56-member Organization of Islamic Conference that puts the rights of religions ahead of individual liberties.

If the campaign succeeds, states that presume to speak in the name of religion will be able to crush religious freedom not only in their own country, but abroad.

Abe Greenwald writes :

As President Bush and other world leaders convene for the farce, King Abdullah’s plan will move steadily along and his image as peacemaker will be broadcast far and wide. He can back off of whatever lukewarm peace initiative he’s laid out once he’s made his case for global blasphemy.

Yes. Irony is not dead.

Crossposted on Yourish.

About Soccerdad

I'm a government bureaucrat with delusions of literacy.
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One Response to The jihad against blasphemy starts with interfaith understanding

  1. Sabba Hillel says:

    From today’s Washington Times (e-edition by email). THe quoted section is all that appeared in the email to be copied.

    Arab leaders decline to snub address by Israeli president
    By Betsy Pisik
    THE WASHINGTON TIMES
    UNITED NATIONS | A U.N. conference on religious tolerance broke new ground Wednesday when a half-dozen Arab leaders – including Saudi King Abdullah for the first time ever – stayed in their seats while an Israeli president spoke. Perhaps the reason was that they liked what he said.

    The article went on to say what they liked. Peres agreed with the Saudi “peace plan” that Israel should give up all territory “occupied” after the 1967 war including Jerusalem.

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