Two From Local Rag GTA Muslims

In the first one, the editor raves about the return to office of "George Galloway, a Voice of the Oppressed":

George Galloway, an internationally renowned Palestinian supporter (watch video) and one of the biggest voices of oppressed people of the world made a sensational political comeback in U.K. Parliamentary by-election. He has inflicted a crushing humiliation on Labour. He termed the "Bradford Spring". He defeated Labour by more than 10,000 votes.

The Tories were pushed into third place, while the Liberal Democrats came fourth.

In his victory speech, Mr Galloway invoked the series of uprisings that have toppled dictatorships across the Arab world as he called his victory the "Bradford Spring"...

Or, more accurately, the "Bradfordstan Spring."

The second piece is by Sheharyar Shaikh, "the former President of North American Muslim Foundation [NaMF]...specializing in contemporary Islamic thought and modernity." (See Blazing Cat Fur's post about NAMF here.) Mr. Shaikh (Sheikh Shaikh?) hauls out the same old tu coque arguments in defending the contents of a Muslim marriage manual advising men to use corporal punishment on disobedient wives:

As far as the founder of Islam, the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), is concerned, he gave the Muslims the best advice when he said: The best of you are those who are the best in conduct toward their wives. His wife Ayesha testifies that the Prophet was never seen to hit a servant, woman or an animal. His example is what we Muslims are to emulate at all times.

We Muslims are also enjoined to lend an ear to criticism. Some criticism however is simply unfair and amounts to propaganda and hate-incitement against one target community by giving the audience an incomplete or a distorted picture. The Toronto Sun review article on Thanvi's work A Guide for Muslim Couple is guilty of casting suspicion of misogyny and wife abuse singly on the Canadian Muslim community with no mention or regard for the era of the book’s authorship, misogynistic works of other faiths, presenting a distorted, one-sided impression of the book, and failing to mention female abuse as a serious issue confronting society at all levels. This is an example of journalism run by a vile agenda against the Muslim Community.

Some free PR advice for you, Mr. Shaikh: purely from a PR standpoint, I don't think it's a good idea to mention the Prophet's moppet wife in trying to make a case for the putatively contemporary mode of Islamic marriage.

Update: Houriya Ahmed reveals how Galloway smarmed his way into Muslim hearts (info that, go figure, wasn't in the GTA Muslims editorial):

Galloway reached out to Muslim voters and those with Pakistani heritage and told them they shouldn’t vote for the Labour candidate Imran Husain. He insinuated that Husain drinks alcohol and is therefore not a proper Muslim. He also told Bradford West’s voters that he has done more for Pakistan and Kashmir than Labour ever did. He reminded them that he has been the one who cares about Muslims by standing up to Western “imperialism” and has tried to “save the people of Iraq”, sided with Palestinians “in their agony” and has demanded an “immediate” end of the war in Afghanistan.

Update: Cue the jaunty British Invasion-era whistle:

Hey, there, Georgie boy,
Oozing down the street so boastfully.
Coasting to a win;
They couldn't see the ugliness there
Inside you.

Hey, there, Georgie boy,
Pandering to Muslims did the trick.
You are a slick trickster
And your shtick's
A hit with that crowd.

You're always Zion-baitin'
And hatin' those awful "Jooos".
In Bradford that MO couldn't lose,
They loved it so!

Hey there, Georgie boy,
There's no other Georgie deep inside.
Your innerds: bad as your outside
So no way there's gonna be
A totally
Reformed Georgie boy...