A Thousand Cuts

Shock collars are put on dogs for some reason...Some only understand that language...

refer #243..The only thing that works is a collar that squirts citronella when he barks.

#242 by HP

This is just great! Blame the bearer of the bad news – starting with the author.

Make no mistake about it, this is a powerful write-up – perhaps better than this site deserves – especially the way it starts out (I commented on that earlier – I wish it had been a full-fledged short story!)

Facts and figures are already out there for those who wish to find out – as several have!

In my view, a conscious attempt was made here to trivialize this topic! I have no way to know if chowk-staff was complicit. But it is quite obvious who are the people now trying to come up with excuses!

As far as “confrontational” tone is concerned – I have seen worse – much, much worse – over topics of very little substance! And not from THIS author!

I did not know that chowk-dot-com has a “prescribed” level set for an article’s “tone” and even puts a limit on the recommended “level of confrontation”! I personally think this write-up has just the right tone – perhaps a LOT milder than THIS interactor would have invoked!

If Jawahara made a “mistake” as you so glibly paw out in your interact #242, what the heck kept you from coming in and contributing YOUR two-bits to the effect and setting the right tone?! Instead, you had your ass parked somewhere else – and show up just in time to offer this lame dog of an excuse!

This dog don’t hunt!

Half the reason the discussion on this article took the turn that it did, is the tone of the article itself.

Jawahara made a serious mistake in presenting this article as a feminist issue instead of a social or a cultural issue it is in Africa. Then the false dilemma of accusing the ummah in conclusion unnecessarily put people on the defensive.

This is not an issue that gets air time in the subcontinent media and many on this site are not even fully aware of the extent of the problem. I was aware of this problem but did not know how widespread it was in Africa.

Jawahara’s confrontational approach and not providing any fact and figures to support her contentions or I might say “accusations” led to the degrading of the issue to the extent that people ended up making fun of the whole thing.

This might serve as lesson for future writers and the editors of this site that serious issues like this one would only have a serious discussion if the author is coached in presenting the information in a neutral manner and then making a case for raising awareness of the issue.

Jawahra writes well but unfortunately this is a poorly conceived, designed and crafted article that could have used editor’s help too. No matter how senior an author is, he/she should always be counseled by the Editors when they introduce a new subject to the audience whose level of information about the subject is unknown.

Chowk staff:

It will never happen that people will actually pause to think about this topic with any degree of seriousness if it is allowed to be turned into a topic of “humor” as it has been allowed on this board – perhaps with your complicity!

Your oversight of this board has been pathetic – to say the least! An utter and absolute disgrace!

#Jawahara

Your angst is fully understood.

Carrying out procedure – especially on youngsters – is outrageous. In fact – from what I gather from medical literature – there is little gained even by its (much milder) cousin of an analogue conducted on males!

But what can be done?

The laws prohibiting this practice are already in place (as listed in #152), both within USA and internationally. We all know that the applicable areas are limited. Those practicing it are not necessarily feeling duty bound to follow such laws.

The vast majority of such populations are practically unreachable. Short of actually going to those places and hitting those parents on the head – what else is feasible?

Education is the key – but a lot of this “drilling into the head” takes place through the maulvis – both the illiterate and the “educated” variety.

As far as discussions on this board are concerned, you will NEVER get the Maulana Ullus and Ullies of the world to agree to any statement which sows the slightest seeds of doubt on any practices he or she would associate with his or her faith!

It is good fun for some of the interactors here to toss around double-entendres and accumulate one more arrow to shoot at each other – that’s all!

Jawahara, your article and related stories from Scout and Sajal were a very painful read.

Any person with an iota of conscience or empathy for fellow human beings will rightaway say that this is flat criminal and let’s see if we can do something to get rid of this practice. No argument, no ifs and buts. It really does not matter whether it’s part of local culture or tacitly accepted by any religion or not.

Thanks for education.

Re: # 231

jawahara,

...... i agree with you, but there is a third tactic being used by some of the male interactors that is even more disturbing : the pavlovian response of insecure desi man to lash back at women in general and blaming women for their misfortunes - it is despicable

Zeemax, thanks for the personal and totally unwarranted attack....just goes to prove my assessment of your character and intelligence. You make it so easy to judge you that I am not even tempted to stoop to your level. I do feel sad for you though. Go in peace.

Re: # 235

Ad hominem attacks?

Child, I was merely mirroring your own premise. And boy did you not like that....

#233 by Saminasha

Whatever you say Mem Saheb ... but can I pretty please have an answer instead of ad hominem attacks?

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Re: # 232

as if...zeemax, stop using locker braggadacio in your interacts...it makes your reality even sadder...

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I am discovering two tactis being used in the interacts.

I find it interesting that instead of focusing on what FGM is and examining the effects it has on women and children, the focus of some is to just try and distance Islam from it. It`s unIslamic, it`s mainly cultural, let`s all say how great Islam is. What the heck does that accomplish?

About FGM not being practiced in Saudi Arabia, forgive me if I don`t find a plainly Islamic site to be the most credible source of information. I wouldn`t ask Tom Cruise to tell me about abuses in the Church of Scientology.

There are other independent sources that document FGM in Saudi Arabia. Granted it`s not widely practiced but it is practiced there and in other Muslim countries as well. Here`s a link to just one article on the topic. There are others:

http://www.arabnews.com/?page=9§ion=0&article=60703&d=20&m=3&y=2005&pix=community.jpg&category=Features

The other tactic is to try and deflect discussion by saying but X, Y and Z are horrible practices as well, focus on that. Yes, there are tremendous injustices in the world

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against women and against men and women--there is death and stoning and starvation and abuses of all kinds. Just because this article is on FGM which I do consider a major abuse, does not mean that these other things do not exist or that they are not heinous. But what does that have to do with the article at hand?

I think in the modern world, with access to medical research, not to mention soap and water, to use cleanliness as an excuse to mutilate helpless children is barbaric. We`re not living in the 7th century and Islam never told people to not think and adapt.

There is enough modern research that shows that the male foreskin, for example (somewhat comparable to the female hood) actually helps in protecting the penis (or the vagina). And really, how is excising something that is so rich in nerve endings (several million in the foreskin, for instance) going to help in sensitivity?

Adult women choosing to make (misguided) decisions to mutilate their bodies is not comparable to holding down a screaming child and cutting away sensitive parts of his/her body leading to major health problems in the future. Heck, if an adult woman wants to have FGM, it`s her choice.

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Re: # 226

doh!