France, like the rest of the liberal West, gets this exactly and lethally wrong. First we forbid individuals their natural right to set the rules within their own property, to exclude and admit who they choose, to demand the burkini or to ban it. Then we set the law on people for the crime of wearing too much cloth on the public beach. A photograph is reproduced worldwide showing three armed male policemen standing over a Muslim woman and making her remove the clothes she considers necessary for modesty. Whatever your opinion of Islam and its clothing taboos, does anyone in the world believe that this makes the next jihadist attack less likely? To call it “security theatre” would be a compliment. The popular entertainment it calls to mind is that of the mob stripping and parading une femme tondue.
Natalie Solent, “Security strip”, Samizdata, 2016-08-24.
August 26, 2016
QotD: France’s “burkini” ban
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Which is the appropriate adjective for this ban? Perverse? Or all the way to insane?
Comment by Steve Muhlberger — August 26, 2016 @ 11:15
It’s well-calculated to incite further anti-European activity, that’s for certain.
Comment by Nicholas — August 26, 2016 @ 15:15