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Legislator Causes Rift in Saudi Over Women's Rights
A month ago, Mohammad al-Zulfa wanted the Consultative Council to think about offering the right to drive to "some" women. One would think that this is not such a terrible sinful thought to have and speak aloud. However, if that person is in Saudi Arabia like Mohammad, then this is a different story altogether.
He's created a controversy and the line is drawn in the sand between the Conservatives and the ones who want to see the country move into the year 2005.
Conservatives argue that women will be forced to consort with strange men, such as police officers and mechanics. Women will have to expose their eyes to drive. " 'Driving by women leads to evil,' Munir al-Shahrani wrote in a letter to the Al-Watan daily. 'Can you imagine what it would be like if her car broke down? She would have to seek help from men.' " (and then the world would tip on its axis and stop spinning and gravity would cease, the time-space continuum would be disrupted and we'd all die before this because the sun would come careening through the atmosphere and burn everything in its path - these are my comments).
"The driving ban applies to all women, Saudi and foreign, and forces families to hire live-in drivers. These drivers are allowed to be alone with women because, al-Zulfa explained, clerics deem this a lesser evil than driving." (Plain Dealer Newspaper, Friday June 3 ed., Cleveland)
His suggestion was simply to study the issue because the Council was talking about traffic accidents and chauffeurs. Ironically al-Zulfa believes that women are safer drivers! "He suggested that women over the age of 35 or 40 to be allowed to drive - unchaperoned on city streets, but accompanied by a male guardian on highways."
The proposal was put in writing, but the Council head is sitting on it, probably not wanting to get involved in such a hot issue that has earned al-Zulfa death threats and furious accusations that al-Zulfa wants women to "commit the double sin of discarding their veils and mixing with men."
Imagine! All this just over allowing women to drive. I never understood why women weren't allowed to drive in that country until now. Now I understand. Why if we let women see without the veil they're going to realize how damned ugly their men are, they'll start talking to police men and finding ways to circumvent the law so that they can leave the country and marry a hot Persian or Pakistani guy instead. There would become a mass exodus of Saudi women. The next thing you know, they'll be coming back burning their bras and wearing white tank tops and daisy dukes shorts with high heeled sandals. Men would fall over themselves in shock and be unable to control their sexual lusts and the world would end because Bush would declare war with a retaliation by the entire Middle East and we'd end up blowing up half the world with nuclear weaponry.
Whew! So glad Saudi is looking out for all of us. Yes, I know that was completely silly and irrational, but what in this whole article ISN'T?!? Women driving and being able to go out by themselves, "free to go when and where they please" is a bad thing - why???
He's created a controversy and the line is drawn in the sand between the Conservatives and the ones who want to see the country move into the year 2005.
Conservatives argue that women will be forced to consort with strange men, such as police officers and mechanics. Women will have to expose their eyes to drive. " 'Driving by women leads to evil,' Munir al-Shahrani wrote in a letter to the Al-Watan daily. 'Can you imagine what it would be like if her car broke down? She would have to seek help from men.' " (and then the world would tip on its axis and stop spinning and gravity would cease, the time-space continuum would be disrupted and we'd all die before this because the sun would come careening through the atmosphere and burn everything in its path - these are my comments).
"The driving ban applies to all women, Saudi and foreign, and forces families to hire live-in drivers. These drivers are allowed to be alone with women because, al-Zulfa explained, clerics deem this a lesser evil than driving." (Plain Dealer Newspaper, Friday June 3 ed., Cleveland)
His suggestion was simply to study the issue because the Council was talking about traffic accidents and chauffeurs. Ironically al-Zulfa believes that women are safer drivers! "He suggested that women over the age of 35 or 40 to be allowed to drive - unchaperoned on city streets, but accompanied by a male guardian on highways."
The proposal was put in writing, but the Council head is sitting on it, probably not wanting to get involved in such a hot issue that has earned al-Zulfa death threats and furious accusations that al-Zulfa wants women to "commit the double sin of discarding their veils and mixing with men."
Imagine! All this just over allowing women to drive. I never understood why women weren't allowed to drive in that country until now. Now I understand. Why if we let women see without the veil they're going to realize how damned ugly their men are, they'll start talking to police men and finding ways to circumvent the law so that they can leave the country and marry a hot Persian or Pakistani guy instead. There would become a mass exodus of Saudi women. The next thing you know, they'll be coming back burning their bras and wearing white tank tops and daisy dukes shorts with high heeled sandals. Men would fall over themselves in shock and be unable to control their sexual lusts and the world would end because Bush would declare war with a retaliation by the entire Middle East and we'd end up blowing up half the world with nuclear weaponry.
Whew! So glad Saudi is looking out for all of us. Yes, I know that was completely silly and irrational, but what in this whole article ISN'T?!? Women driving and being able to go out by themselves, "free to go when and where they please" is a bad thing - why???
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