So, let's get this straight. U.S. soldiers were wrong to "torture" (looked more like hazing to me) Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib. And the fact that the U.S. has investigated the incidents, tried the guilty parties and meted out punishments to the soldiers in question doesn't matter. The left continues to bleat about "human rights," "torture," "U.S. atrocities."

Oh, what champions of human rights we have in Barbra Streisand, Alec Baldwin, Rosie O'Donnell, Sean Penn, Nancy Pelosi, and company. There they stand, ready to condemn the U.S. for every human rights infraction, no matter how small.

Fine.

And very soon, any day, any minute, we'll hear the Chorus of the Left lift its powerful voice in protest against human rights violations being inflicted upon millions of women every day. Soon they will gather, sponsor a concert, speak before the UN, lead a protest, get arrested…anything, anything to draw attention to the ongoing tragedy.

Soon, the left, longtime self-proclaimed champions of human rights, will surely rise to defend Muslim women. At the very least, they'll do something, certainly, to "raise awareness" right?

Wrong. According to a recent study conducted by the Egyptian government, Muslim women in that country are suffering from beatings, torture, humiliation at a rate that ought to bring screaming protests from the left.

The survey found that one-third of Muslim women had been tortured at some point by their husbands and that of those women, 45 percent had been beaten at least once in the past year and 17 percent had been beaten three or more times during the same period.

This torture is brought to these victimized women courtesy of, Islam, the so-called (yes, "so-called" can be applied to something other than partial birth abortion) "religion of peace." The same provisions of Islamic law (known as Shari'a) not only permits the abuse, but the murder of Muslim women in countries throughout the Middle East.

Hiding like liberal cowards behind Shari'a complicit with Egyptian law, violent husbands avoid prosecution on religious grounds, because Egypts penal code excludes acts committed "in good faith," pursuant to a right determined by virtue of the Shari'a.

The country's law also allows provides murdering husbands with some loopholes, while establishing a clear double standard for husbands and wives, a double standard that makes it clear that women in Muslim societies have roughly the same rights as those of a camel. For example, if a husband kills his wife in the act of committing adultery, it's considered a misdemeanor, much like abusing a camel. But if a wife kills her husband for the same reason, the charge is murder. Need we discuss the penalty those women face after their "fair and speedy trial"?

The torture of Muslim women is so widespread that it's become an ingrained part of the culture in many Muslim countries.

The Egyptian government survey found that most Egyptian women regard beating as a normal and acceptable part of life. Eighty-six percent of the women surveyed thought husbands were justified in hitting their wives sometimes, and a large majority said a refusal to have sex was sufficient grounds for beating.

And the grounds for acceptable beatings—a lovely concept—are truly disturbing by virtue of their triviality:

• 70% said a beating was justified for "talking back" to a husband.
• 65% thought a beating was warranted if they were caught talking to another man.
• 42% said spending too much money justified a beating.
• 26% said burning dinner was sufficient cause for receiving a beating.

Certainly, all Americans, no matter what their political leaning, should be disgusted by this, and should regard this survey's results and the plight of Muslim women as an indicator as to the nature of our enemies in Islam. All of us should even be outraged by the systematic torture, abuse and murder that is part of the "religion of peace," and we should recognize that the treatment of women living under Islamic law speaks volumes about Islam, and the cultures associated with it.

But it's truly disturbing that the highest profile members of the American Left, the women's rights activists, the pro-legalized abortion cabal, the entertainment industry and influential politicos including Hilary and Ms. Pelosi, stand silent, uttering not a syllable, in the face of this barbaric behavior.

One can only attribute their silence to either apathy (no, that can't be write, the Left always "cares" and "feels your pain") or to their unwillingness to admit that our president is right when he calls fundamentalist Islamic extremists "evil."

2004-12-03