Israel: Jennifer Lawrence edited out for ultraorthodoxs (from GD)

[Yorktown]

Reposting from General Discussion, but it's too funny for the Religion forum to miss out
http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=7368255
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/film/the-hunger-games-mockingjay-part-2/jennifer-lawrence-poster-censorship/

Posters for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 have reportedly been censored in two Jewish cities, Jerusalem and Bnei Brak, with star Jennifer Lawrence removed to leave only the flaming “mockingjay” background.

Examples of the Lawrence-free poster, seen below, have been shared by the Israeli newspaper Ynet and on Twitter.
To outsiders, the censorship seems bizarre: Lawrence is, after all, the star of the film, and one of Hollywood’s most bankable actresses

But the decision was apparently made due to concerns that posters featuring the actress would be vandalised by Orthodox Jewish groups.

“Unfortunately we are subject to unofficial coercion that forces us to be more careful,” Liron Suissa, the vice president of Nur Star Media (the film’s Israeli PR company) told Ynet (via Haaretz). “We have had endless vandalisation and clients prefer not to take the chance.(..)

In Bnei Brak – a almost wholly Haredi city , governed by Haredi leaders – images of women are rarely seen in public spaces.

[OffWithTheirHeads]

1. The terrorists win again. This time Haredi terrorists

[Yorktown]

2. God is not great

[AuntPatsy]

3. Yep

[OffWithTheirHeads]

4. The God that the fundimentalists worship is a flaming asshole. In every case. Jewish, Christian, e

[mwrguy]

5. Fucking Israel

[Yorktown]

6. Arabs live better in Israel than in surrounding countries

Especially when they want to think by themselves

Atheism and suppression of religious freedom in Egypt and Saudi Arabia
by Salman Hameed

I'm currently reading Arabs without God: Atheism and freedom of belief in the Middle East. It is an interesting read and I will have more to say on it when I'm done. In the mean time, Saudi Arabia continues is continuing its horrific practices - this time of flogging a blogger, Raif Badawi, for "insulting" Islam. Since we only know of the cases that gain international coverage, we have no idea how many such cases actually exist. This is the case for executions as well. I had blogged about a popular Lebanese host back in 2009 who was put on the death row for sorcery charges, but also discovered that several others had been executed more quitely for similar charges (also see Saudi government mulling spreading atheism as an act of terror). It was further disgusting to see world leaders lining up to pay tribute to a late Saudi king (does his name even matter - as their policies more or less remain the same).

Back to Badawi. He is a father of three and has already received 50 of his 1000 lashes in front of spectators. Here is the description of his flogging:
The witness said Raif Badawi’s feet and hands were shackled during the flogging but his face was visible. He remained silent and did not cry out, said the witness, who spoke to

the Associated Press on condition of anonymity fearing government reprisal.
Badawi was sentenced last May to 10 years in prison and 1,000 lashes. He had criticized Saudi Arabia’s powerful clerics on a liberal blog he founded. The blog has since been shut down. He was also ordered to pay a fine of 1m riyals or about $266,600.
His next two floggings were postponed - probably because of international pressure. But here is his sister talking about his flogging, and her lawyer husband has been put in jail as well for defending her brother.

And then we have Egypt where a 21-year old student, Karim al-Banna, has been sentenced to 3-year jail term for declaring himself to be an atheist:
It took one session on Jan. 10 for a court in the Nile Delta province of Beheira to sentence Karim al-Banna, a 21-year-old student, to three years in prison for saying on Facebook that he was an atheist. The student’s lawyer complained that he was denied the right even to present a defense, but an equally chilling aspect of Mr. Banna’s case is that his father testified against him.
Also telling is that Mr. Banna was originally arrested, in November, when he went to the

police to complain that his neighbors were harassing him. This was after his name had appeared in a local newspaper on a list of known atheists. Instead of protecting him, the police accused him of insulting Islam.

[Lordquinton]

7. The reasoning is terrible and massively offencive

but I do kinda like the second poster on it's own.

[Behind the Aegis]

8. The plague of the ultra-orthodox.

It is a shame they PR company had to bow down to the bigotry of misogynistic assholes. Of course, bullshit like this gives license to some to fling their hate who'd act the opposite if it were one of the other religions of Israel committing this bigoted tripe. If you have to "hide" women, in any form, the problem isn't women, it's your belief system! It is one thing to respect a culture, it is quite another to cater to their bigoted ways.

[Yorktown]

9. "If you have to "hide" women, the problem isn't women, it's your belief system!"

When that truth will percolate down to places like Afghanistan is anybody's guess..

[Behind the Aegis]

10. True.

I see the same with many ultra orthodox groups from the Abrahamic religions. There are some actions which aren't as dire, "virginity pledges", to the most vile practices like FGM, the commonality is the shaming and mistreatment of women. I am gayer than a parrot farting a rainbow on Castro Street, but I love women, I respect them, and I appreciate them.

[Yorktown]

11. Never saw a parrot farting a rainbow on Castro Street

But it's been a long long while since I haven't been to San Francisco.