Atheism, fuck yeah!
Welcome atheists, skeptics, freethinkers all,
to this little corner of godlessness.
~Mooglets

A mother and father in Pakistani-administered Kashmir have been arrested for murdering their 15-year-old daughter by dousing her with acid “in the name of an honour”, police say.

They say it is one of the first such cases of its kind in the region.

Honour killings happen when mostly male family members believe the victim has brought dishonour to their community.

The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan reported 943 women were killed in honour killings last year.

That represented an increase of more than 100 from 2010.

But such happenings are rare in parts of Kashmir under the control of Pakistan.

Police say that the incident took place in a remote village in the southern district of Kotli. They say that the case was brought to their attention by the couple’s eldest daughter.

It will not be clear until Friday - when the parents are due in court - if they admit or deny murder charges.

‘Suspicious’

Local police officer Raja Tahir Ayub told the BBC that the girl’s father became enraged when he saw his daughter “looking at two boys” riding on a motorcycle outside their home on Monday.

Police say that the parents suspected she was having illicit relations with one of the pair.

“He took his daughter inside, beat her up and then poured acid over her with the help of his wife,” Mr Ayub said.

Police say that that the couple did not take their daughter to hospital until the next morning, and she succumbed to her injuries on Tuesday evening.

The head of the state-run district hospital in Kotli - Muhammad Jahangir - confirmed the death.

He said that the girl was brought to hospital in a serious condition with more than 35% burns.

“There was no way she could survive,” he said.

Police say that the dead girl’s married elder sister informed them of the alleged incident on Wednesday morning.

They say that she became suspicious when her parents did not allow mourners to see the face of the dead girl before she was buried - otherwise a normal practise in Kashmiri Muslim society.

In March the government of Pakistani-administered Kashmir made acid attacks a criminal offence punishable with life imprisonment.

BBCNews

OMG, fuck you, fuck you, fuck you

~Mooglets

Western countries have appealed for an end to violent protests targeting their embassies, sparked by a film mocking the Prophet Muhammad.

The EU urged leaders in Arab and Muslim countries to “call immediately for peace and restraint”.

The US is sending marines to defend its embassy in Khartoum and has called on Sudan to protect foreign diplomats.

At least seven people died in protests in Khartoum, Tunis and Cairo on Friday and there are fears of further unrest.

Protests in Egypt have spread, with demonstrators breaking into a base holding multi-national peacekeepers in Sinai, and clashes outside the American consulate in the coastal city Alexandria.

In Afghanistan, the Taliban said their attack on the huge Camp Bastion Nato base, in which two US marines were killed, was carried out in response to the film.

‘Civilised world’

US embassies have borne the brunt of the attacks after clips of the film - which was made in the US - were distributed online.

Marines were deployed to Libya on Wednesday after the attack that killed the US ambassador and three other Americans and to Yemen on Friday after violence in Sanaa.

On Friday, US Vice-President Joe Biden called his Sudanese counterpart, Ali Osman Taha, to express concern over the security of the US and other Western embassies in Khartoum.

“Vice-President Biden reaffirmed the responsibility of the government of Sudan to protect diplomatic facilities and stressed the need for the government… to ensure the protection of diplomats in Khartoum,” a White House statement said.

A crowd of several thousand attacked the US embassy in Khartoum on Friday, and state radio said three protesters had been killed in clashes with security forces.

The German and UK embassies in Khartoum were also attacked, although the controversial film has no known links to either country.

European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso condemned the attacks as unacceptable and against “the rules of the civilised world.”

EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton urged “national authorities in all countries concerned to swiftly ensure the security of diplomatic missions and protect diplomatic staff”.

“It is vitally important that leaders across the affected regions should call immediately for peace and restraint, as has already been the case in many countries.”

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle said the Sudanese ambassador in Berlin had been summoned on Friday and “unequivocally reminded of his government’s duty to protect diplomatic missions”.

‘Standing fast’

Protests against the film - Innocence of Muslims - began on Tuesday in the Egyptian capital Cairo.

The film depicts the Prophet Muhammad as a womaniser and leader of a group of bloodthirsty men.

However, its exact origin and the motivation behind the film’s production are still unclear.

A man suspected of involvement in its making, Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, is being questioned by federal probation officers in California.

Nakoula, who was jailed for bank fraud in 2010, is not allowed under the terms of his release to access the internet or to use aliases without permission.

He has denied involvement in the film.

Two people were killed in Tunisia on Friday after crowds breached the US embassy compound in Tunis and clashed with riot police.

The nearby American school was looted and set on fire. There was also one death during protests in Egypt and another in Lebanon.

On Friday, US President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton attended a ceremony at Andrews Air Force Base for the repatriation of the Americans killed in Benghazi.

Mr Obama said the US would “stand fast” against the violence at its diplomatic missions.

—-

BBC News

As soon as this stopped being a conversation and became a mass riot, as soon as people were injured, as soon as people were killed and property damaged, I lost every single fuck I could have given about why the ‘protesters’ were pissed in the first place. 

~Mooglets

TLC’s All-American Muslim is a reality show depicting five Lebanese-American families in Dearborn, MI. I haven’t seen it, but this review from Entertainment Weekly‘s Ken Tucker sure makes it sound harmless:

These “characters” are all reasonably appealing, either charming or entertainingly irritating in the tradition of reality TV, though the show is edited at a snail’s pace. All-American Muslim centers on explaining customs and beliefs, and how the people the producers have selected either follow or ignore their religion’s dictums.

Despite that, The Florida Family Association — a group promoting “traditional, biblical values” — sees a darker purpose behind the series:

All-American Muslim is propaganda clearly designed to counter legitimate and present-day concerns about many Muslims who are advancing Islamic fundamentalism and Sharia law.  The show profiles only Muslims that appear to be ordinary folks while excluding many Islamic believers whose agenda poses a clear and present danger to liberties and traditional values that the majority of Americans cherish.

The group called for an e-mail campaign pressuring the show’s advertisers pull their spots. At least one company caved under the pressure.

Lowe’s acknowledged pulling commercials from “All-American Muslim” following consumer complaints, but denied they came from one group.

“We understand the program raised concerns, complaints, or issues from multiple sides of the viewer spectrum, which we found after doing research of news articles and blogs covering the show,” said Katie Cody, a Lowe’s spokeswoman.

The denial that Florida Family Association was the primary influence behind the decision seems dishonest, considering that Lowes sent an e-mail to the group’s Executive Director informing him of the decision.

But I can understand why Lowe’s wants to avoid the taint that any association with FFA would produce. In addition to their annoyance at any show of tolerance towards Muslims, they also freak out about the growing acceptance of homosexuality. Right now, they are particularly disgusted by Gay Day at Disney World and the Teen Nick show Degrassi, which features LGBT characters. But the backlash is happening anyway. As of this writing, the #LowesHatesMuslims Twitter hashtag is attracting multiple messages every minute.

Though Muslims and atheists certainly have some stark disagreements, I think it’s important for us to take stands against sectarianism in all of its forms. The fears FFA are expressing are irrational and contrary to the evidence that American Muslims (who represent less than 1% of the population) tend to be moderate and participate positively in American life. And the type of rhetoric used against them is largely the same as that used against against gays and secularists.

From Friendly Atheist

Can’t have them non-white, non-Christian, probably not even American people shown to actually be human! That’s against God and America!

~Mooglets