PJ O'Donovan wrote:
> Friday, December 08, 2006
> Public swimming halted for 'Muslim afternoon'
>
> In a further example that the values and aspirations of Islam are
> antithetical to those of the United Kingdom, Croydon Council has
> instituted 'Muslim only' swimming times in its public swimming
> baths.
>
> Cranmer's occasional communicant, Mr Croydonian, will now be barred
> for two whole hours on Sundays from swimming in his revealing speedos,
> and there will be no watching the girls go by, because they are all
> banned. Mr Croydonian will only be admitted if he conforms to Shari'a
> law and wears shorts that hide the navel and cover the knees.
>
> Croydon Council has made provision for Muslim women outside its normal
> opening hours, and the Shari'a dress code is to be covered from the
> neck down to the ankle. Have you ever tried swimming wrapped in a
> sheet? Cranmer can't help wondering why health and safety factors
> have been subsumed to this impractical dress code.
>
> Croydon Mosque states quite unequivocally: 'Muslims are not allowed
> to show off intimate parts of their body. This is non-negotiable.
> Muslims have as much right to go swimming as anyone else.'
>
> Indeed they do, sir, indeed they do. But everyone else also has as much
> right to go swimming when they wish to do so. This is the United
> Kingdom, and nothing is 'non-negotiable' in its liberal democratic
> tradition. With ironic timing, the Prime Minister has said in a speech
> today that tolerance was 'what makes Britain, Britain' and warned 'we
> must be ready to defend this attitude...so conform to it; or don't come
> here. We don't want the hate-mongers, whatever their race, religion or
> creed.'
>
> Cranmer wonders how such sectarianism in the leisure industry would go
> down in other parts of the UK. What would be the outcry in Northern
> Ireland or Scotland if there were 'Protestant only' swimming times? How
> would the Mohammedans react if Christians started to insist on
> non-negotiable Christian-only hours in the public services? Cries of
> 'racism'? Religious discrimination? Insults to 'The Prophet'?
> 'Behead those who oppose the Shari'a swim'?
>
> By adopting Islamic practices, Croydon Council is unwittingly
> conforming to the demands of the Dar-al-harb - the House of War. In
> Islamic theology, this is a battle that rages until there is a victor,
> and a vanquished...
Does this mean they enter the pool without first taking a public
shower.....or do they shower fully clothed too. That surely would be a
health issue.
The world's gone mad.
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