Unless the women wearing the Burqa ask for our help we should keep our sticky beaks to ourselves. However, I pray that some clown doesn't use a Burqa for a serious crime - bombing or whatever - because that will end the debate.

Hijab is a non-issue. Whoever raised that into the debate is just stirring.

Suze. Christians aren't the only ones who have issues with the Burqa. Move on.

Pericles, unfortunately a bug ate my computer, just recently, so I no longer have the direct references, which are mostly UK sights.

However, if you spend a bit of time going through "Grumpy Old Sod.com", you will find references to some articles on injustices in Britain. Have a look at the "Wankar of the Week" [after correcting the spelling], subject for many of them. With much of my stuff lost, that's the best I can do.

Another is GREENIE WATCH, John Ray's sight. Scroll down through the current days posts you will get to a list of his other sights. One of these is EYE ON BRITAIN, where much of these injustices are reported.

I have been quite horrified at what I have seen, where councils are employing people to go through rubbish bins, to enable them to fine residents for noncompliance with recycling regulations. The thought that we may follow their lead is really scary.

csteel, that idea worries me no less than what is going on in the UK.

How about some refference to it please.

Dear Foxy,

Thank you for your reply.

From the anti-slavery activists to Gandhi freeing India from colonial rule the evocation of something being un-British has been an effective rallying cry for those wanting change or the end to injustice.

For it to work there must be an innate sense of what it means to be British within the populace. So I would venture that there must be a little more to it than merely “self-reliance, reward for effort, and social conservatism”. Perhaps such initiatives as the vote for women in the colonies of New Zealand and Australia were the result of British sensibilities freed in part from the shackles of a rigid class system.

I think much of the Western world knew what Damien Green meant by the term un-British and my hope would be that if nurtured properly the term un-Australian might have a similar resonance.

Dear Pericles,

I would second that. I found no reference to a nurse and that amount nor a number of other combinations. We can only hope for a more definitive link.

Dear Belly,

Try walking down sections of Serbia dressed as an Imman. However Christian clergy generally can walk unmolested in Indonesia and Malaysia.

Dear AGIR,

Firstly an apology. I had promised to return to your thread on Glen Beck but I had been seriously busy with other commitments I had to set aside much of my recreational time including OLO. When I finally got a chance the thread had been archived.

Perhaps it is misplaced but I would appear to have a little more faith in a British ethic than your good self. What Wilberforce, the Quakers, and much of the British population did to destroy the moral legitimacy of slavery is part of the historical record as is the complicity of many European states in the Holocaust.

I get the sense you might prefer the Stars and Stripes in the corner of our flag however I'm happy with what we have until we are ready to become a republic.

Dear Hasbeen,

http://www.theage.com.au/national/secret-files-on-protesters-given-to-desal-consortium-20091204-kb29.html

Absolutely outrageous in my book.

Dear suzeonline,

Thank you. I will have to agree with StG though as I feel the Burqa offends secular sensibilities possibly even more than Christian ones and compared to somewhere like the US we are an extremely secular nation.

I wonder how many posters realize that
there is no standard "Islamic dress,"
for women, and different types of clothes
are worn in different parts of the Muslim
world. Some women wear blouses and skirts,
others wear shirts and slacks; still others
wear a gown-like garment, and so on.

The majority of Muslim women according to
Prof. Saeed, "Islam in Australia," believe
that covering the face is not a requirement,
as neither is covering the hair. It's a
choice. And, the women who choose to wear
the burqa, especially in Australia are a
relatively small minority.

Therefore if the percentage of women who are
going to be wearing the burqa in this country
will be so small as to be negligible, how are
they going to be problematic for the rest of us?
and to suggest that they are going to be some
sort of "security risk," is surely nonsense.

Has anyone robbed a bank or a store in this country
wearing a burqa? Not to my knowledge.
Why would anyone bother, running
in one would be rather difficult for a start.
A ski-mask would be a better alternative - and
easier to escape in, and remove.

To me all this sounds like a storm in a teacup.
Fear of the "unknown," and the potential "threat"
it poses to Australia, its society and values.
I would prefer to think that this country is
more tolerant than that - we have a solid foundation
built on the values of the rule of law, democracy,
human rights, equality, pluralism, and a fair go
for all. And we should remember that in fact,
one reason why many Muslims migrate to this country
is the very existence of these values.