Today’s Jesus and Mo strip, called “deer”, deals with the new law allowing women in Saudi Arabia to drive. The author sent a note with his email:
You may have heard that Saudi Arabia is finally going to let women get a driving licence. Well, don’t get too excited.
I read the link, which sort of poo-poos this change, but I don’t see any valid criticism. At any rate, the cartoon, which is mildly amusing but not as funny as usual:
So the government is going to allow Saudi women get a driver’s license and drive. The question remains: will their husbands allow it?
One common SA view seems to be, “not in MY household.” In WEIT’s nemesis Iran, women drive, and, contrary to Saudi Arabia (and some places in you-know-where), Darwinian evolution is fairly taught in public schools (although school seems mandatory only up to the 8th grade). [Ref. Elise K. Burton. 2010. Teaching evolution in Muslim states: Iran and Saudi Arabia Compared. Reports (of the NCSE): 30 (3): 25-29].
At best, this is going to result in a Muslim recycling of the old “woman driver” jokes that the rest of us outgrew long ago.
Now, “bejeezus” is definitely an idiomatic way of saying “Jesus”.
Is there a comparable expression in Islam, or Judaism?
I’m assuming that ‘bejeezus’ is an ‘Irishism’.
Similar to ‘By Jove’, ‘By Christ’ etc.
‘Holy Moly’ (Holy Mary) comes to mind and Holy Moses (which would also be suitable for Jews or Muslims of course).
Italians have ‘dalla Madonna’ (By Our Lady) and the euphemistic ‘Santa Maria della polenta’ (Holy Mary of the porridge).
I wonder, could Saudi males drive in the rain? Do they even need windshield wipers?
I have visited Riyadh when a sudden rainstorm has taken place. Since the drains are not maintained properly, the result is flash floods everywhere. I can confidently report that (male) Saudi drivers are even more incompetent at dealing with such conditions than most drivers elsewhere in the world. Saudi women couldn’t do any worse if they tried.
When I posted about SA women being able to drive, one US woman was quite derisory of the whole thing. After a bit of back and forth it turned out that this woman, who is at least my age (50s), didn’t know women there weren’t allowed to drive. When I told her other stuff about the laws for women there, it was all completely new to her and she was quite blown away.
As for the cartoon, how can you tell if they’re angry if their faces are covered?
One wonders how anyone so ignorant ever found her way to your Twitter feed! (Or was it on a blog post I (inadvertantly) missed?) Well, let’s hope it’s never to late to learn a little bit about the world we live in…
It was Twitter, and I was surprised too. I usually follow people who follow me out of courtesy on Twitter if they seem reasonably normal. Most of the time that means another atheist. Women not being allowed to drive in Saudi Arabia is something I would expect female atheists on Twitter to know as a matter of course.
I hope all the pro-Islam anti-Hirsi Ali types are aware of the restrictions on women, esp. in Saudi Arabia, but this raises the possibility that they aren’t; that all they know is the apologetics crap promulgated by the ctrl-left. A religion of peace the hajib is voluntary, etc., etc.
Good point. It may therefore answer the question why so many think Linda Sarsour is so wonderful too.
I lived and worked in Saudi Arabia in the early 1980s. While there, I learned of a study commissioned by the Saudi King to determine the cause of the high death rate on Saudi roads and make recommendations to reduce those deaths. The study, chaired by the head of the Texas Highway Patrol, made its’ first, and only, recommendation to stop the males (The only drivers at the time.) from wearing ghutras, the head scarves, while driving because it limited their side vision and increased the probability of an accident happening. The Saudis were so incensed at the idea that they trashed the study and nothing came of its’ recommendation to remove the head scarves and, thus, lower the death rate.