[the Daily Mail]
>>>> It's a mainstream newspaper, Jack. It wouldn't be in print if it was
>>>> racist.
>> It wouldn't be in print if it was too racist for Tony Blair, but that
>> doesn't mean a hell of lot.
>> It has been consistently the worst in the UK for cheerleading attacks
>> on refugees.
> That would be incitement, which would be covered by UK law.
> You also said it was racist. If it was racist, it would be
> breaking other UK laws.
There are many forms of racism which are *not* illegal in the UK but
which are still capable of getting people burned alive, tortured or
beaten to death. The Mail's lawyers know perfectly well what they
can get away with. The paper's editors have decided on a strategy of
selling papers by using an ongoing meta-story in which Britain is
threatened by alien invasion. Not having any credible Martians to
write about, they pin every evil they possibly can on "asylum seekers",
knowing that most of them can't afford a legal fightback and that
most of their readers are in no position to know when the Mail is
bullshitting.
>>> In any case, you have to concede that the swimming pool in Croydon
>>> is insisting on Muslim dress.
>> Not according to their website.
> Yes.
>>> And if you still aren't convinced...
>>> http://www.croydon.gov.uk/leisure/sports/swim/498121
>>> Apology please, Jack!
>> What they actually say:
>> : Contrary to national press reports over the weekend
>> by which they presumably mean the Daily Mail...
>> : sessions are
>> : open to all faiths. The sessions for women are held on Saturday
>> : afternoon and the sessions for men are held on Sunday afternoons.
>> : The dress code during these sessions requires a greater level of
>> : covering-up than would be the case during public opening hours.
>>
>> Which most likely means "no string bikinis".
> Certainly. It means covering up sufficiently to enable
> Muslims to swim.
> Therefore Islamic dress rules apply. You denied that.
The point is there is nothing specifically Islamic about such a
restriction. Just looking at a group of women dressed according
to such rules, you couldn't tell what religion they were. There
are Christian groups (like the Brethren and some Catholics) that
set the same sort of boundaries. Or look at the Mormon dress code:
http://www.lightplanet.com/mormons/daily/modesty.htm
>> I'll be in Istanbul in a week. When I'm in Turkey I generally dress
>> according to the local version of the Islamic dress code for men. What
>> do you suppose that means?
> I don't know. But we're not talking about day wear in Istanbul.
My point was: you *could not tell* that I was fitting in to any specific
restriction. Most men in Edinburgh would do so without any intentional
action. Or, look at a Turkish crowd, and you can't tell which the
observant Muslims are. (Whereas anywhere outside Utah, you can spot a
Mormon male at 400 yards).
> And I'm still waiting for that apology....
Pompous little fart, aren't you?
============== j-c ====== @ ====== purr . demon . co . uk ==============
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