UN Anti-racism Conference Supports Exactly That Which It Purports to Oppose

If the UN Anti-Racism Conference were a movie - it's most appropriate staring role would have been a younger Jerry Lewis starring as it's central character, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. No other characterization of the UN Conference is as apt as comedic farce. While Iran jails journalists who dare to question Islam or the Government (who are, to be fair, one and the same) they are at the same time given a pulpit at the UN to spew their hypocritical venom, suggesting they are in fact the "victims" of racism.

The conference would be a great comedy, if not for the fact that this is a reality in our world - which, unfortuantely, makes it a tragedy.

As we have seen in our own Country, Islamic extremists - the kind who would forbid women to learn to read, the kind who see nothing wrong in allowing forced marriages of 8 year old children, the kind who pass rape-authorization laws, the kind who jail or even kill people who question Alla - well, they assert that to question these practices amounts to "Islamophobia" and they seek to beat into submission through our Human Rights Commission anyone who dares challenge this.

While many in Canada deride Ezra Levant and Mark Stein for their loud and agressive stance against the so-called Human Rights Commissions - the reality is that their cause is not some "right wing tirade".

We are fortunate that Barack Obama is now the President of the United States - as it would be too easy to dismiss a boycott of the UN Conference if George Bush had carried it out. However - under Obama there is a legitimacy to his position that Bush lost long ago. Obama understands what many in our own country do not - that free speech is the cornerstone of freedom. That sometimes, religion should be open to criticism - no, in fact, sometimes religion MUST be open to criticism - which criticism should not be muzzled under threat of sanction by the state. Obama understands this.

As you read this, Hossein Derakhshan - an Iranian-Canadian blogger has now been held in jail for 171 days and counting,without charage, for apparently doing what I am doing right now. Jailed by the country who has been given the pulpit at the UN Anti-racism conference. It would be funny - if it weren't so terribly sad.