me and my big mouth. my point is that whatever we say (you, me & the dingo) is just an opinion. but anything a politician says has more power, by virtue of who they are. and yes, i think his motive is purely political.

no, i don't support genital mutilation, jehova's witnesses or fox-hunting.

women in veils cop a lot of discrimination - they are sworn at, spat on, etc. they are the public face of Islam. and they are more likely to stay home to avoid that treatment - comments like jack straw's just provoke the worst type of people into hassling muslim women.

cultural changes happen over generations - it's unlikely that the first generation of women will willingly change. but judgements from politicians are much more likely to force people to hang on to their traditions than to abandon them.

i remember what a hoo-hah was caused when boys started wearing long hair at school (quite a long time ago, as you can guess). this is a bit the same - bitching at all those long haired boys just made it all the more fashionable.

freda (running out quickly!)