Koran's burning is... beyond stupid.

My friend just tweeted: Do me a favour. Search twitter for "Muslim". Then imagine that vitriol directed at you. *That* is what the 'protests' are doing. I haven't commented on the issue because I don't know where to start, but that says most of what I'd start with if I could.

Koran's burning is... beyond stupid.

The other day I was fantasizing of telling those people, "You know, Bin Laden wants there to be a religious war between Islam and the West. You're playing right into his hands!"

Except then I thought maybe the people who want to burn the Koran want a religious war too....

And I want to cry all over local news too.

Not only the light rail in J-lm published a survey with "would you mind traveling with Arabs?" questions. Now it also wants to separate men and women into different cars in order "not to hurt the feelings of some of the ultra orthodox customers". And I wish my news would just stop being weird and scary at that, but no.

And in the middle of all that and of my dad driving me crazy, I had two couchsurfers (one is still here, actually). Two interesting English lads. With one I had immediate connection with. The other, just nice guy. But I fear he got bored here (I did warn them in advance there's nothing to see around here). Unfortunately, the nice guy doesn't seem to believe in frequent showers. And he did spent hours talking with my dad about politics, and that's enough to drive anyone crazy. Not sure what to make up of it all. With the other one, I'm pretty sure I'll stay in touch.

I need to regain sanity and back to study. Not sure if I'll be able to do either, but while I'll clean up around here I'm planing to do so while continue my obsessive listening to The Sound of Music soundtrack. I don't know, there's just something so powerful in it. Don't mock me.

Sanity. Why so rare?

{{Shir}} Ugh. Would they really do that (separate men and women)? Hope you're not too freaked out.

They warned me about the discussion threads that follow the Guardian's 'Comment is Free' articles, but I had *no idea*. Trying to remember that it's neither about my writing, nor personal. All the same, I'll think twice if they ask me to write another one!

separate men and women into different cars

What if a husband and wife - or a brother and sister - or Allah forbid, two friends of opposite sexes - oh, wait, Allah kinda did forbid that, didn't He?, never mind - should actually, you know, *like* one another and want to spend their time in one another's company? What if they were shy and didn't want to spend their time in the company of strangers, even strangers of their own sex? Separation-of-the-sexes rules always seem to me to reduce everyone to their gender, and take away any possibility of individual differences. Though maybe that's the point. Erasing a person's individuality makes him/her less likely to protest injustice, or even to notice it.

Many countries have women-only train cars so that women can avoid being groped on their way to work.

It's not that there isn't critique about it from some of religious people themselves - it's just that they're being silenced. I just want to take few transgendered friends and share a car together.

It's funny. Women were the ones to be blamed at being emotional and therefor irrational. But it's religious men who are imposing their "feelings" on life, for all.

Seska: it's important that you wrote. Really. Don't mind the comments - having your voice out there is more important than that.

Women were the ones to be blamed at being emotional and therefor irrational. But it's religious men who are imposing their "feelings" on life, for all.

Yeah, that's true of a large number of religions.

Many countries have women-only train cars so that women can avoid being groped on their way to work.

Yeah. But it's not that kind of trains. It's the kind where they might (and I'm sure they will, in the end) beat you up if you won't go to the car that was intended for your gender. All to keep the men holy, and the women as sinners. In the kind of trains you talk about, it's up to the woman's choice - and that's what it's all about.

I just want to take few transgendered friends and share a car together.

Who are always ignored in these debates.