January 12, 2004

ALLAH'S CALIPERS

Thanks for the polio, bastards:

Polio has spread to two more countries in West Africa, further jeopardizing the World Health Organization's goal of wiping out the crippling disease by next year, an official of the agency said Friday.

The chief obstacle is opposition to polio immunization by some Islamic leaders in the state of Kano, in the northern part of [Nigeria]. These opponents contend that the vaccine contains hormones that sterilize girls.

Their concern is touching. A 2001/2 study by the Nigerian Centre for Gender Health and Human Rights found that 80% of Kano girls had undergone female circumcision.

Posted by Tim Blair at January 12, 2004 12:43 AM
Comments

O muslins, curse the clitorus for is is the font of all iniquity and the murderer of prophets, O Allah shake the ground beneath it's feet and vibrate it vigorously for it within your power.

Posted by: Amos at January 12, 2004 at 01:26 AM

Two sides of the same coin, one is a "respect of culture" so we can't say boo while the other is "barbaric practice" according to our friends on the left

See Blackadder goes forth episode 5 General Hospital:

http://www.gazmac.freeserve.co.uk/blackadder_4-5_script.htm

" Darling: So you see, Blackadder, Field Marshal Haig is most anxious to eliminate all these German spies.

Melchett: Filthy Hun weasels fighting their dirty underhand war!

Darling: And, fortunately, one of *our* spies--

Melchett: Splendid fellows, brave heroes, risking life and limb for Blighty! "

Posted by: P. Ingemi at January 12, 2004 at 03:19 AM

I cannot figure out what P. Ingemi is saying.

Posted by: ushie at January 12, 2004 at 04:16 AM

That makes two of us. And I've watched Blackadder. Translation, please.

Posted by: Andrea Harris at January 12, 2004 at 05:17 AM

If they were refusing the vaccine because they believed it contained mercury and caused autism, would we be any more understanding?

Posted by: triticale at January 12, 2004 at 05:29 AM

Triticale --
I wouldn't.

Then again, I'm also one of those weirdoes who doesn't believe in alien abductions, widespread Satanic cults abusing children, witches, faries, magic, psychic powers, astrology, or socialism.

Posted by: Warmongering Lunaitc at January 12, 2004 at 05:48 AM

Triticale has a point - he's referring to those ill-educated twerps in the UK who refuse the MMR triple jab because some scaremongering headline-chasing eejit by the name of Andrew Wakefield decided to release an epidemiologically-worthless 'study' touting a link between the vaccine and autism. Now rates of the three diseases are on the rise. As the sainted John Brignell puts it in Number Watch:

Here is a dilemma that, in these litigious times, should be worth a few dollars if you can get it to court:

1. Dr A creates a scare about vaccination that is later shown to be spurious.

2. As a result Mrs B decides not to vaccinate her children.

3. As a result the neighbour, Mrs C, contracts rubella from them while she is pregnant.

4. As a result her baby is born blind, deaf and with a defective heart.

Whom does Mrs C sue?

It's not just poor benighted heathens in Africa who believe in witchcraft.

Posted by: David Gillies at January 12, 2004 at 06:20 AM

The BlackAdder quote is from the fourth series (set in WWI) when Blackadder is investigating a security leak.

It shows that Melchett calls spies "dirty and underhanded" when they are German, but "brave heroes" when British.

Posted by: Quentin George at January 12, 2004 at 06:49 AM

Whom does Mrs C sue?

The person/corporation with the most money,
or best insurance policy,
naturally!

Posted by: Peggy Sue at January 12, 2004 at 07:26 AM

Female Genital Mutilation or Clitoridectomy should be called what it is.
It is nothing like circumcision.

Male circumcision versus FGM is like
nail clipping verus hand amputation.

Posted by: May Lee at January 12, 2004 at 07:32 AM

Female Genital Mutilation or Clitoridectomy should be called what it is.
It is nothing like circumcision.

Male circumcision versus FGM is like
nail clipping verus hand amputation.

Posted by: May Lee at January 12, 2004 at 07:34 AM

From the same Black Adder episode:

Darling: Four verses! Four verses! I meant four verses! Look, I'm as British

as Queen Victoria.

Edmund: So your father's German, you're half German, and you married a German?


Nothing to do with the subject at hand, but i always found that line hilarious.

Posted by: madne0 at January 12, 2004 at 07:48 AM

May Lee: absolutely correct. Can anyone point to an article on the long-term effects of FGM?

Posted by: Fidens at January 12, 2004 at 08:11 AM

Fidens:
Here's one. Found it on z9.
It's a little bit on the emotional rant side but that's hardly surprising when you read the description of what the deathcult™ does to these (young) girls.

Posted by: Mellow at January 12, 2004 at 09:32 AM

This is really depressing. Rotary International has been running a project for many years with the intent of eliminating polio. Rotary, with local health authorities, organises days where literally millions of children are vaccinated. We were getting pretty close - don't remember the exact situation, but there were few countries left to clear. There has been a slight resurgence in recent years - a bit like MMR in the UK, the direct experience of the disease concerned is now missing so people don't see the need to vaccinate.
Still, I guess this explains why Rotary is on Hamas' hate list.

Posted by: Peter Q at January 12, 2004 at 09:37 AM

Some of the best Blackadder quotes:

Ambassador: I hate you English. With your boring trousers and your shiny toilet paper and your ridiculous preconceptions that Frenchmen are great lovers. I'm French and I'm hung like a baby carrot and a couple of petits pois.

-------------------------------------------
George: Now I've got my lovely fire I'm happy as a Frenchman who's invented a pair of self-removing trousers.

----------------------------------------

Nothing like a bit of French bashing, eh?

Posted by: Quentin George at January 12, 2004 at 08:03 PM

Female circumcision - illegal practice engaged in by dirty Arabs.

Male circumcision - legal practice engaged in by dirty Arabs and God's chosen.

Of course male genital mutilation should be allowed. It's part of our religion!

Posted by: Andjam at January 12, 2004 at 09:12 PM

Andjam,

Are you an equal-opportuniy anti-semite? Male circumcision is done not just by Arabs and Jews.

While I'm no fan of male circumcision, some forms of female circumcision would be equivalent to having your penis chopped off. Can you imagine what that's like? (Or maybe you don't have to imagine)

Posted by: Andjam at January 12, 2004 at 11:35 PM