Friday, March 11, 2005

EVERYBODY SEEMS to be writing about the fatwa against Osama bin Laden by Spanish Muslims, the day before the March 11 anniversary.

Hate to rain in their parade, but while it's true that the ruling body who issued the fatwa is the main one, it's hardly the only one in Spain. There are plenty of Islamic elements controlled by wahabbi extremists. Besides, hasn't anyone heard about the taqiyya, for chrissakes? I'm not implying that this is necessarily so in this case; in fact Mansur Escudero and his people have a public record of moderation. But we should wait a little before jumping up and down in joy upon hearing the news. Just in case.

UPDATE. Minor correction in the 2nd to last sentence; spotted via Slate (welcome, Slate readers!)