Muslim woman denied a can of coke because she could use it as a weapon.

[OMG!WTF!]

Originally Posted by Quis_Separabit

Do you honestly believe that?

Yes I honestly do...

http://www.cnn.com/2015/06/01/politi...reening-tests/

[Quis_Separabit]

Originally Posted by OMG!WTF!

Yes I honestly do...

http://www.cnn.com/2015/06/01/politi...reening-tests/

Not think its a bit of a lie tho?

Oh no we are so bad at our job, come test us out terrorists

[DoubleF]

Originally Posted by burn_baby_burn

I always found that interesting. You can't have a small knife, and for good reason, but you can bring on a full 40 of booze? Smash that over someone's head and then use the broken bottle as a weapon. I'm surprised it hasn't been used to hijack a plane yet.

I wondered that too. Then I stumbled on a news article about this guy a while back...

http://terminalcornucopia.com

A bottle seems primitive in comparison. Dude has built grenades, shotguns, clubs, crossbows etc.

A very interesting read. DO NOT show this stuff to a curious kid. I was appalled at how easy someone could build these. They are seriously easy to make.

Appalling, yes. Am I worried? No. These are easy to build, but anyone would notice someone fidgeting with something complex before something happened. I believe we are all safe.


But back on topic... this whole story is just bizarre. I have no doubt it has quite a bit of racism involved though.

[annasuave]

I won't comment on Ms. Ahmed's experience. But I can say that I have never been handed an unopened can or bottle on any flight I've ever been on. I've had beverage cans confiscated at check-in, security, and the gate also. I've always been told "We don't do that, ma'am." Perhaps its just women that aren't allowed un-opened cans on airplanes? You know, in case we wig out and start pounding someone in the face with it until they stop moving? One time, it was a 200ml can of pineapple juice (unopened) I had on me that was denied. It seemed harmless enough to me, but I guess not.

I've never been handed an unopened can or bottle in bar either. And on that one, I have been directly told "No. You might use it as a weapon".

I can only conclude that I either come across as a right bad-ass to bartenders and flight-attendants, or that there's a pervasive fear out there that in the hands of your average woman, 350 ml of lightly pressurized liquid becomes a deadly weapon.

[CroFlames]

nm

[T@T]

Originally Posted by rubecube

I see T@T has been doing some travelling.

No wonder I get riled up, I'm anti religious not racist. I would back her 100%.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by annasuave

I won't comment on Ms. Ahmed's experience. But I can say that I have never been handed an unopened can or bottle on any flight I've ever been on. I've had beverage cans confiscated at check-in, security, and the gate also. I've always been told "We don't do that, ma'am." Perhaps its just women that aren't allowed un-opened cans on airplanes? You know, in case we wig out and start pounding someone in the face with it until they stop moving? One time, it was a 200ml can of pineapple juice (unopened) I had on me that was denied. It seemed harmless enough to me, but I guess not...

I have, but only a couple of times. The last time I flew back home on British Airways, and when I was asked what I wanted to drink with dinner, I asked for red wine. The flight attendant gave me a bottle, and then suggested I take two or three extras(?!), and then asked if I wanted anything else to drink.

I have never flown BA before, but I would do so again.

[combustiblefuel]

Originally Posted by Textcritic

I have, but only a couple of times. The last time I flew back home on British Airways, and when I was asked what I wanted to drink with dinner, I asked for red wine. The flight attendant gave me a bottle, and then suggested I take two or three extras(?!), and then asked if I wanted anything else to drink.

I have never flown BA before, but I would do so again.

Ya the British have flying down. Virgin Airways in the Uk is the best flight ever! Every class seemed to feel like first class.

[combustiblefuel]

Originally Posted by OMG!WTF!

Yes I honestly do...

http://www.cnn.com/2015/06/01/politi...reening-tests/

You don't find it a little weird that this comes out and the Patriot Act expires literally in a matter of days? Coincidence right?

Maybe it is and maybe it is not but damn that timing tho....

[TorqueDog]

"Racist..." "Muslim..."

... So yeah, can we stop using the wrong damn word already? It's not racism, it's discrimination. Muslims aren't a race.

[OMG!WTF!]

Originally Posted by combustiblefuel

You don't find it a little weird that this comes out and the Patriot Act expires literally in a matter of days? Coincidence right?

Maybe it is and maybe it is not but damn that timing tho....

I want to think you're on to something there. I'm sure most CNN news is staged for reasons other than the obvious. But showcasing the TSA mangling its responsibility would not be an argument in favour of renewing the Patriot Act (if that is the coincidence you're getting at). People have been asking for that particular agencies privatization since the Patriot Act publicized it after 9/11. Seeing it as another colossal failure would suggest the Pariot Act should expire.

[CorsiHockeyLeague]

Originally Posted by TorqueDog

"Racist..." "Muslim..."

... So yeah, can we stop using the wrong damn word already? It's not racism, it's discrimination. Muslims aren't a race.

I dunno, in this case it's more the "muslim" thing that is a misnomer. It sounds like she was visibly middle-eastern, which is more of a racism thing... had she been a white muslim or an indonesian muslim do you think the same would have occurred? Maybe, but I don't know that I'd jump to that conclusion.

In general though I'm 100% with you, wish people would stop conflating the religion and the race. Doing so is itself racist. You're talking about the most ethnically diverse religion in the world. Muslim does not equal Arab.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by CorsiHockeyLeague

...In general though I'm 100% with you, wish people would stop conflating the religion and the race. Doing so is itself racist. You're talking about the most ethnically diverse religion in the world. Muslim does not equal Arab.

Is that a fact?

[Coach]

Errgg..

Any person-to-person conversation about something like this would result in:

"Racism!"

"Actually racism refers to discrimination based on a person's race. Muslim is not a race, it's a religion."

"Ok. Discrimination then. Moving on..."

Like seriously? Someone using racism incorrectly is not really the issue here. Who cares? Ethnocentrism, racism, antisemitism, ageism, sexism, etc... Can't we just call it all discrimination so pretty much any thread revolving around this doesn't fall into some stupid argument over the semantics of what very similar words mean?

[polak]

Originally Posted by terminator

Option 3:

She's a racist.

Only one person in the story has shown themselves to be racists/discriminatory and that's the scumbag that yelled that.

You better hope that you never accidentally do one thing for one person and something else for another and have one of those people be a visible minority.

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by MattyC

Errgg..

Any person-to-person conversation about something like this would result in:

"Racism!"

"Actually racism refers to discrimination based on a person's race. Muslim is not a race, it's a religion."

"Ok. Discrimination then. Moving on..."

Like seriously? Someone using racism incorrectly is not really the issue here. Who cares? Ethnocentrism, racism, antisemitism, ageism, sexism, etc... Can't we just call it all discrimination so pretty much any thread revolving around this doesn't fall into some stupid argument over the semantics of what very similar words mean?

Agreed. Grinds my gears as well. Arguing semantics in these cases is usually just a ploy by people who want to excuse their prejudice by not have the "R" word attached to it.

There is an underlying racial element in most cases of Islamophobia. Yeah, it's absolutely true that most muslims are not Arabs, but I would wager that most cases of hate and anger that is directed at people that are not white or that anti-Islamic caricatures almost always depict Arabs.

[Wormius]

I thought the beer having to be opened by the flight attendant was due to liquor laws, no? One time when we were at an Xmas party I took it upon myself to open up one of the wine bottles, because the server wasn't around. When she finally came back around I was slightly admonished for having opened it.

I guess they would have just made it policy for every beverage so it becomes second nature. I guess if you had more than a few passengers who wanted unopened cans and wanted to start chucking them it could be a concern.

[CorsiHockeyLeague]

Originally Posted by Textcritic

Is that a fact?

I believe so, in terms of percentages. That was my understanding, anyway. If it's not, it's not worth splitting hairs over the difference. We aren't talking about a monolithic faith in terms of ethnicity by any stretch.

Originally Posted by FlamesAddiction

Agreed. Grinds my gears as well. Arguing semantics in these cases is usually just a ploy by people who want to excuse their prejudice by not have the "R" word attached to it.

There is an underlying racial element in most cases of Islamophobia. Yeah, it's absolutely true that most muslims are not Arabs, but I would wager that most cases of hate and anger that is directed at people that are not white or that anti-Islamic caricatures almost always depict Arabs.

And the inverse grinds my gears - conflation of anti-Islamism, Islamophobia and racism. There are people who hate arabs (ie racists), there are people who hate muslims (ie the corollary of anti-semites), and there are people who oppose the specific teachings of Islam, like killing apostates (ie Christopher Hitchens). These all may overlap to some degree (especially the first two groups) but they are very different animals.

The conflation has led to some abject stupidity in political discourse, most recently the public tarring and feathering of Ayaan Hirsi Ali for no apparent reason.

[Textcritic]

Originally Posted by CorsiHockeyLeague

I believe so, in terms of percentages. That was my understanding, anyway. If it's not, it's not worth splitting hairs over the difference. We aren't talking about a monolithic faith in terms of ethnicity by any stretch.

Thanks.

This has nothing to do with this thread, but your response raises an interesting research question. I am sure this has been explored; it is just not something that I have read anything about. I am curious now about the effects on a religion as it spreads and diversifies beyond its original ethnic or geopolitical setting. This interests me as a historian of ancient religions, since in Greaco-Roman antiquity ethnicity and "religious" self-identification were overlapping criteria. As the two categories gradually became more distinct from one another, how did that end up shaping religion? In turn, how did this shift change perspectives and definitions of ethnicity?

I'm happy if someone can answer those simple questions for me, thanks.