Notice: Blue Scarf Meetings at your local McDonald's

This Thursday at 7 pm local time, I will be meeting Dag of the No Dhimmitude blog, for a discussion of free speech, multiculturalism, and Islam, at a McDonald's restaurant at Main and Terminal in Vancouver, British Columbia (the McDonald's on the southwest corner, not the one across the street in the train station). Any Flares readers in the area are welcome and encouraged to attend.

Thanks to Dag's blogging and to the Revolution Bleue movement in France that has emerged in response to elite media and government crack downs on Republican free speech, in the wake of the recent riots and the more general desire in many western countries to ban anti-Islamic and other forms of politically-incorrect speech (on this see, for example, Wretchard's recent post), there will be people meeting around the world in McDonald's restaurants and wearing blue scarves to identify each other and to show sympathy with those in France who are wearing blue scarves in public opposition to their present regime.

While we Canadians are yet unsure if we share fully in the goals of the French blue scarves - a recent anti-Masonic comment at their blog raised eyebrows because of the proximity of anti-Masonic and antisemitic rhetoric historically... but Freemasonry in France is a frankly political and anti-clerical movement, perhaps deserving some criticism, we don't know - it strikes us as nonetheless important for westerners to get out in public and find their voices in face of the various postmodern ideologies that would limit speech in the name of the supposed victims of free speech.

And it is important for people to discuss this issue in terms of the ongoing conflict between the west and Islam - or Islamic radicalism, if you prefer. What, for example, is the duty of western men and women to the Islamic women who are forced (in our opinion) to wear extreme forms of head covering, like the Burka, in our westetern cities, a symbol of their more general oppression under Islam and related forms of family life? How do we contest the multicultural ideolgies that would defend "the choice" to wear the burka, as a "right"?

This question of defending women enslaved by religion, family, and multicultural ideology is the specific topic for our meeting this Thursday. If you cannot join us, have a look at Dag's blog - especially his archives for last week - to gain some sense of the larger blue scarf movement and consider organizing a meeting at your local McDonald's. Just get the word out in the blogosphere when you will be at McDonald's, and see if any blue scarves show up. It worked for Dag.

Dag chose McDonald's as our meeting place, not simply because they are ubiquitous and you can sit for hours with a cup of coffee. In their ubiquity McDonald's also symbolize a western secular alternative to the sacred meeting places of the Islamic world. And because the target of our discussions is not simply Islamic radicalism, but its present tactical marriage with imperialistic western multiculturalism, McDonald's is the perfect symbol since it is so often a scandal for the elitist anti-American leftists who know what is best for all of us and who would restrict our free speech and stomachs accordingly.

Of course, it is when the mouths are closed that violence is most certain, and the present moves to restrict free speech are sure to reduce the security of Muslims in the west, not strengthen it. Because we are not against Muslims as people (we are out to love and defend the better side of humanity in all of us) but simply want a venue to meet and criticize aspects of both Islamic religion and postmodern western ideologies, we expect and will welcome into our meetings people of all faiths and backgrounds.

UPDATE, Feb. 1, 3:30 GMT: Dag's blog is currently undergoing some trouble. It's not loading properly and he thinks he may be under some kind of attack. Please try the link later