Idiot Extraordinaire - Saudi Arabia Religious Council

[AnCap Dave]

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Allowing women to drive in Saudi Arabia would mean no more virgins and an increase in homosexuality, according to academics at Saudi Arabia's highest religious council, Majlis al-Ifta' al-A'ala, it has been reported in the Telegraph.

More pornography would be used if women were allowed on the roads and rates of prostitution and divorce would alo rise, the report stated.

Produced in conjunction with Kamal Subhi, a former professor at the King Fahd University, the study into repealing the ban predicted that there would be no more virgins left in the Arab kingdom in 10 years.

Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world which bans women from driving.

Professor Subhi described sitting in a coffee shop in an unnamed Arab state where "all the women were looking at me".

"One made a gesture that made it clear that she was available," he said. "This is what happens when women are allowed to drive."

The report was produced for the country's legislative assembly, the Shura Council. However this institution has no power as Saudi Arabia is ruled by a monarchy with absolute power.

The state's controversial ban on female drivers last came under attack in September after Shaima Jastaniya was sentenced to 10 lashes just days after Saudi King Abdullah granted women the right to vote. The punishment was overturned after international and domestic pressure.

Saudi Arabia is currently considering a law for women to cover up their eyes if they are deemed too "tempting."

What the fuck kind of sense does this make?!

[R.E.H.W.R.]

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What the fuck kind of sense does this make?!

Sense? That would imply they had logic.

[MrBogosity]

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What the fuck kind of sense does this make?!

No less sense than banning gay marriage. Same crazy, different country.

[Ibrahim90]

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What the fuck kind of sense does this make?!

to use a term in Arabic, this is "junoon". therefore, it makes no sense. it's also a bid'ah (oh, the delicious irony).

having said that, It's like Shane said: it makes about as much sense as the prohibition on gay marriage, and the arguments are no different.

[MrBogosity]

to use a term in Arabic, this is "junoon". therefore, it makes no sense. it's also a bid'ah (oh, the delicious irony).

Can you explain what those words mean?

[Ibrahim90]

Can you explain what those words mean?

well, junoon should be straightforward: it simply means "insanity". I thought it was fitting for the situation: after-all, it's a bunch of Arabs saying this.

now bid'ah? that one's a lot more interesting. the word itself doesn't directly translate in English, but the closest I can come to is something along the lines of cultural innovation. So broadly speaking, any new custom or tradition, is a "bid'ah".

what does this have to do with the article? well, in addition to the broad meaning I mentioned, the word has a narrow, religious meaning. specifically, it refers to the addition of new religious practices or customs to Islam, that do not originate from any of the primary sources (i.e. the Qur'an or Hadiths). There are details about this that I could go into, but we'll keep it basic.

Now the irony is that The Council has had a long history of opposing all bid'ah--at least supposedly. Now they are turning around, and: 1) banning women from using cars themselves (or anything transportation related), and 2) are using a ruling, methodolgy and reasoning that in all honesty, I have not found either in the Qur'an, Hadiths, any of the main schools of thought, or even Wahhabism itself--"puritanical" as it gets (which is what the council often uses, and yes, I'm being loose with the term "puritanical"). There is no analogy, train of thought, or any backing whatsoever to their assertion, using only Primary Islamic material. There is only some councils Santorumistic assertions, that granting them the right to drive will make them make passes or something.

In short: If that is not a bid'ah, I don't know what is. It does go to show just how full of shit these people are....How anyone honestly takes them seriously, I do not know. Though I can see why the Al al-saud house, in all of it's infinite hypocrisy and tyranny, have made them the official head of religion in Saudi Arabia: see Nestor Sander's "Ibn Saud: King by Conquest".