[Rhodes22-list] Politics - The Camel's Nose Is Well Inside The Tent

[DCLewis1 at aol.com]

Brad,
 
The article about Muslim cab drivers not carrying passengers with alcohol  is 
interesting, but really it's part of a larger problem.  You've also got  
Christian pharmacists not dispensing RU2 pills based on their religious  
convictions, doctors not providing service,  etc.  The problem goes a  lot further than 
Muslims.
 
My opinion comes out of the civil rights era.  As I recall, barbers  that 
declined to cut the hair of black people - ostensibly because Afro  hair is 
usually wiry etc - lost their business license and/or were sued.   Few people had 
any qualms about that in the civil rights era.  What's  changed now is that the 
discrimination is based on religious convictions.  Seems to me the civil 
rights approach would work with Muslim cab drivers,  and Christian pharmacists and 
doctors.  All of the above are licensed to  provide a commercial service, if 
they decline to provide the full range of  services, for whatever reason, they 
should lose their licenses.  They  should find another line of work that is 
compatible with their  beliefs. 
 
Regarding the domestic terrorist issue, the lead article in the current  
issue of Foreign Affairs is titled" Is there Still a Terrorist Threat".   The 
abstract reads:
"Despite all the ominous warnings of wily terrorists and imminent attacks,  
there has been neither a successful strike nor close call in the United States  
since 9/11.  The reasonable - but rarely heard - explanation is that there  
are no terrorists within the United States, and few have the means or  
inclination to strike from abroad."
I'm not sure I agree with the author, but he makes a case.
 
Dave