Some Muslims Leaving Islam

          Is the strict Muslim faith about to crack? A recent news report  notes that on the fateful Sept.. 11 anniversary this month a group of young Muslims in The Netherlands announced a dangerous fight for their right to abandon Islam. 

         As you might expect they’ve been threatened with death for preaching the dangerous idea of freedom of religion. Leader of the movement has been forced into hiding. 

          Despite this, similar organizations for reform of the Muslim religion have sprung up all across Europe, where Islam is the fasted growing religion.

          History reveals clearly that when all religions – and political movements, too — become too authoritarian, campaigns for reform spring up. In Holland the church in 1965 made a declaration of freedom of conscience as applied to religion Today’s leader of the reform movement compared the rise of radical Islam to the threat from Nazism in the 1930s. Muslims should be allowed to leave Islam without being threatened, he said.

                   The American colonies revolted against an oppressive government in 1776. We should hope today’s Muslims may in sincere freedom of conscience seek freedom of choice for their religious faith.         

Contemptible and Commendable

          The message of the President of Iran to this country and the  world is both contemptible and commendable: Contemptible because of his continued mouthing of lies and hypocrisy. His message is   commendable to us in that it reinforces the benefits of democracy.                      President Ahmadinejad deepened the hole he’s dug for his country’s standing to the free world when he spoke in a publie forum in New York City. He compounded his earlier lie denying the Holocaust and his country’s continuing support of terrorists. In so doing he may have pleased his existing supporters. But he strengthened our reasons to mistrust him.

          Just as important, he proved to us the benefit of our constitutional freedom of speech and gave heart to thinking people the world over. Freedom does not suffer, and is only benefited when totalitarian fools froth nonsense. 

‘Smoke and Mirrors’ on Iraq

            I’d harbored the vain hope that President Bush would chart a new course for  America’s deepening dilemma in Iraq. But in his latest speech to the nation he  simply used some smoke and mirrors to say the same thing again, leading this country on a futile course toward ever more elusive military victory.

             Statistics he cited revealed military commitment that has no end. That military commitment, too, cannot solve Iraq’s own need for a civil society that will make eventual representative government of the country possible.             The President’s plan for a gradual withdrawal of troops, well-intentioned, perhaps, will only heighten and delay the disaster.  

          Out Constitution properly makes the President the Commander in Chief of the armed forces. This insures a balance of powers within this nation’s government. It doesn’t insure the Commander in Chief will be a wise leader.                 

           There’s only one wise, but sad course open to him: Pull out, now. That will likely be near chaotic. But it will be the best decision, fraught with bloodshed undoubtedly, yet better than any other.            ………………………………………………

If Only Men Would Listen…

Man driving down road.Woman driving up same road.They pass each other.The woman yells out the window, PIG!Man yells out window, B I T C H!Man rounds next curve.Crashes into a HUGE PIG in middle of road, and dies.    

Campus Commotion

        Revisit after a week the campus of our first state university and you’ll be surprised at difference you see. Fast-evolving change is the only constant, and most people have a negative reaction to this.  Not me. 

       On a guided tour of the north and south campuses recently, I was impressed with the careful planning and thoughtfully harmonious architecture of all the new buildings and areas. The billion dollar-plus 10-year construction boom is winding down. It has brought positive change for the benefit of the 27,000 students. 

       The most subtle change is the shift of the geographical and operational center of the campus. Its mid-point is now well beyond (south of) the Bell Tower.  This is logical because most of the student dormitories are there. Where it is convenient, classrooms, dining and student services are also there. In the near future there will be two pedestrian bridges over South Road to connect the north and south sections.

        University-owned campus land will be almost  filled up when present plans are completed, but some open spaces are carefully preserved – the central campus quadrangles,  tree-lined Kenan  Stadium, and the 10-acre pinetum wooded valley along lower Manning Drive. I truly admire the new plan and its carefully-wrought look. 

       Here are just a few of the changes:

·           The new arts common (music and art buildings), about the last project that will be completed, now going up around the present parking lot on north campus.

·           The “Pit South” assembly area tucked within the new students service and residence hall buildings below the hospital.

·           The careful protection of the Polk Place quad as the new science buildings go up around it. (Razing of out-dated Venable Hall (chemistry) to begin shortly.)

·           Renovation of every old building on north campus – such as the Gerrard Hall and Playmakers auditoriums — two  north campus jewels.

·           The imminent start on the long-needed parking deck in the bowl at the west-end of Kenan Stadium, to be surrounded to a couple of new academic buildings

        That’s a glimpse of what’s under way and coming up – without even considering the future Carolina North.  

Uniforms for Pupils: Valuable Lesson

         As the new public school year begins, more and more pupils are being required to wear uniform clothing of some sort. The idea is to make all of them feel equal – so there’s no distinction between any of them by what they wear. 

       This is a time-tested beneficial requirement in schools around the world, but one that some freedom-loving parents resist.  We all resist regimentation.

        But this is not pure regimentation. The uniform is simply a means to teach children not to discriminate on the basis of clothing. As they learn this they apply the lesson to other rules of equality – race, sex and intellect.       

         The more this lesson is understood, the better our schools, and our lives will be.