Here are some of the important stories and opinions from the past few days:
Muslims against Women: Brutal men in northern England—predominantly Muslim immigrants from Pakistan—(allegedly) sexually abused some 1,400 girls—but that’s just the tip of the iceberg, as Raymond Ibrihim writes for Front Page. Muslims have also raped and otherwise brutalized women in Australia and Nigeria, not to mention the Middle East, Ibrihim points out. Of course, only some Muslims abuse women, and Muslims are hardly alone in doing so. But, as Ibrihim argues, the sexual abuse of “infidel” women is built into Islamic theology, at least as some Muslims interpret it. See also Rich Lowry’s article on the subject for National Review.
Iran: The United States is actively working with Iran against Islamic State, Mohsen Milani writes for Foreign Affairs (hat tip to Elan Journo). But both Iran and Islamic State are enemies of America.
Indian Jihad: “Al-Qaeda commander Ayman al-Zawahari released a videotape Thursday announcing plans for a new wing of the terrorist group dedicated to waging jihad in the Indian subcontinent,” John Bacon reports for USA Today.
Mars: Robert Zubrin recently gave a talk at NASA about sending humans to Mars. He said (among many other things): “I think that this task of opening space, opening the universe to humanity, is the most important thing going on at the world at this time. This time will be remembered, because this is when we first set sail for other worlds.”
Cronyists Target Tesla: “The Georgia Automobile Dealers Association filed a complaint Friday with that state’s Department of Revenue charging that the automaker is illegally selling cars,” CNN reports (hat tip to the Consumerist). Tesla allegedly sold 173, when it’s “supposed” to sell only 150. How about Tesla gets to sell its cars to whomever wishes to buy them?
Smearing Rand: The left hates Ayn Rand because she’s a capitalist; religious conservatives hate Rand because she’s an atheist. Members of both camps routinely smear Rand rather than address her actual ideas. The latest round of smears comes from (of all places) PJTV; here’s the video. PJ also published a reply by Walter Hudson; I may have more to say about this later.
Campaign Censorship: “The Center for Competitive Politics today filed two lawsuits on behalf of a Colorado think tank [the Independence Institute] saying that similar state and federal campaign finance disclosure laws are unconstitutional under the First Amendment,” the Center reports.
Regulations: A Florida man complained to his city government about a boy “illegally” running a lemonade stand. Then the government went after the man for illegally running a business out of his home. Read Katherine Mangu-Ward’s report for Reason. God forbid that government actually, you know, protect people’s rights rather than violate them.