Muslim Cab Drivers Can Discriminate

No Liquor Allowed

Imagine the outrage if a Christian Cab Driver refused to pick up homosexuals or drive a woman to a clinic where abortions are performed. What if a Jewish cab driver refused a fare from a person eating a ham sandwich? The fact of the matter is in the United States any job that is regulated by the government cannot discriminate against anyone for any reason as long as the job duties asked to perform are legal. In the situations I have described above, the drivers may have to transport people who they believe are morally reprehensible or are acting in a way that does not follow their religious beliefs. Regardless, these individuals have made a decision to be in a line of work that places them in these situations and they must abide by the laws that affect their profession...If not face the penalty or get a new job. Unless you are a Muslim.

Nearly ten years ago a controversy began at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport in which Muslim cab drivers refused fares in which people where carrying liquor...Unopened. The situation became public in 2000 when a person carrying alcohol was refused by 16 cab drivers in a row. When a Cab driver refuses a fare they have to go to the back of the cab line, often waiting hours for another passenger. To avoid the loss of income, Muslim cab drivers asked the Metropolitan Airports Commission for permission to refuse passengers carrying liquor - or even suspected of carrying liquor - without being banished to the end of the line. MAC rejected the request, concerned drivers would use the excuse to refuse any fare they did not deem beneficial.

Today Muslim cabbies make up about three-quarters of the MAC 900 drivers and average turning down 3 rides a day due to the liquor concerns according to an airport spokesman. Instead of cracking down on discriminating Muslims, the airport will be placing a special color light on their car roofs signaling their alcohol stance to taxi starters and customers.

So how far will catering to Muslims go. What about Cab drivers outside Minneapolis-St. Paul who see a precedent for their local taxi commissions to grant them the same special rights? Will Muslim bus drivers be granted the same rights, refusing any passenger suspected of carrying liquor? In various European countries, Muslim cabbies routinely refuse blind passengers with seeing-eye dogs because dogs are viewed as impure animals. Why not bring that thinking to the United States. Woman with exposed arms or hair can also be viewed as against Islam, so now they can be refused. The precedent being set is dangerous, but the other question that needs to be asked is, what are we afraid of, why do we place Muslim beliefs above those of Jews, Christians and everyone else?

Do we go out of our way to be more sensitive to Muslims because we are afraid to admit that the war against Terrorism in reality is a war against Islam? As a society do we feel better about ourselves if we can show our sensitivity to their religious needs, even though we know that extreme elements of their faith brought down the twin towers? This is a topic for another day, but for whatever reason this country is catering to Muslims over our basic common decency laws and that alone is discrimination...Against everyone else.

Shays Strikes Back
McCain Rips Clinton

When the Foley debacle became the media focus last week, Democratic candidate for Congress in Connecticut 4th district Diane Farrell immediately jumped on the bandwagon calling for House Speaker Dennis Hastert to resign. However, last week she welcomed with open arms a man who killed hs own campaign worker to campaign for her, Senator Ted Kennedy (D-MA). Congressman Chris Shays (R-CT), Farrell's opponent, lashed out at his challenger's hypocrisy, "I know the speaker didn't go over a bridge and leave a young person in the water, and then have a press conference the next day," said Shays. The congressman was referring to the 1969 incident in which Senator Kennedy drove his car off a bridge, trapping and killing campaign aid Mary Jo Kopechne. Kennedy left the scene and didn't inform the police for several hours.

It's nice to see a Republican fight back. Kudos also goes to Arizona Senator John McCain for pointing out the failures of the Clinton administration for not properly dealing with North Korea during their time in office. McCain's remarks came after Senator Hillary Clinton and other Democrats blamed the Bush administration for not dealing with North Korea and allowing them to test a nuclear weapon. "I would remind Senator (Hillary) Clinton and other Democrats critical of the Bush administration's policies that the framework agreement her husband's administration negotiated was a failure," McCain said. "The Koreans received millions and millions in energy assistance. They've diverted millions of dollars of food assistance to their military."

Democrats have refused to acknowledge that Clinton made any mistakes regarding North Korea, even though former Secretary of State, Madeline Albright did admit years ago that she was "tricked" by Kim Jong IL. Today they blame Bush for not holding direct talks, even though appeasing the Korean's with one-on-one talks by the Clinton administration is what put us in this dangerous position. Dems conveniently point out that we can't dwell on the past and Republicans shouldn't play the blame game during an election year.

I disagree whole heartedly. As journalist Bob Woodward likes to point when discussing the pre-election day release date for his new book. Voters should have as much information as possible when going to the polls. He is right. Therefore, voters should know how dangerous and incompetent Democrat appeasement is when it comes to dealing with our enemies.

Blagojecvich Fundraiser Indicted

Antoin "Tony" Rezko a top fundraiser for Illinois Governor Rod Blagojevich has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges that he demanded millions in kickbacks from investment firms seeking business from the state teachers' pension system.

Less than four weeks to go before election day, how many more indictments will be forthcoming regarding Blago and his criminal administration? Only time will tell.

Paulie