Bizarre, Criminal law, International, Religion, Society

Hooked on Hookahs: Hamas Bans Women From Smoking Water Pipes

In Gaza, police are cracking down on the latest public scourge: women smoking water pipes (or shisha or hookahs). Citizens were handed an announcement that the Hamas government was now banning women from smoking water pipes because it leads to divorces.

Hamas officials insist that women smoking water pipes violates tradition and leads to men divorcing women seen smoking in public. The move is part of the increased enforcement of religious norms under the Hamas government.

Source: AFP.

35 thoughts on “Hooked on Hookahs: Hamas Bans Women From Smoking Water Pipes”

  2. To whom it may concern,

    I DO NOT support my tax dollars being spent on viagra … period.

  3. “paid trolls with talking points”

    They seem to be everywhere – even here, God love us.

    Now intelligence collection, there’s some real proof about that – as well as detaining prisoners indefinitely, though that’s slowly changing – but torture? Not yet.

    If there were I’d expect Limbaugh, et. al. to be shouting from the rooftops. ‘Course I don’t listen too often to Rush.

  4. Byron,

    You and I will never agree on the role of government in the world. This story is about the use of an executive order to restrict the rights of “people called women”. Obama is showing utter contempt for the life and well being of our population unless they happen to be in the top of the food chain. That is despicable.

  5. Buckeye/Jill:

    True enough. I am not much on war or Viagra either.

    Jill:

    I think the government should stay out of health care all-together. There would not then be an issue of buying the policy you choose. As I think you see, it will be a reduction in individual rights as are most government programs. Legislators always think they know best for us children.

  6. buckeye,

    Clearly one worries about both right wing people who aren’t in power and the right wing religious zealot currently in power. One always puts the first and most vigorous effort into confronting the right wing zealot who is in power right now. We also need to know when we are being manipulated by the current zealot by the use of distraction, propaganda, paid trolls with talking points–all that kind of thing.

    BTW, Raw Story has an interesting article on the WH preparing its propaganda because the Washington Post is going to actually do some reporting tomorrow and they’ve put together important information on the govt.’s collection of intelligence.

    Byron,

    Your tax dollars aren’t funding abortions even though mine are paying for men’s viagra and the govt.’s many wars and malfeasance of all kinds. Obama made certain that your tax dollars won’t do that and he won’t even allow women in the high risk pool to purchase a policy with their own money. Do you think the govt. should be able to tell you you can’t even purchase your own policy of choice?

  7. Byron

    Why should wars be funded by tax money of people that don’t want to subsidize them? That’s the nature of the beast.

  8. I am opposed to abortion but I don’t think it should be illegal but I would not want my tax money going to pay for something I am against. Why should abortions be funded by tax money of people that don’t want to subsidise it?

    Wouldn’t it be the same as taking money from liberals to promote anti-liberal issues on an individual level?

  9. HHS says – elective abortions will not be paid for with taxpayer subsidies to the high risk insurance funds.

    According to the Stupak amendment “Rape, incest, or life of the mother” options, which are those required in most state laws, remain – and supplemental insurance that is paid by private, state or local insurance funds are still available for “elective” abortions as long as no federal funds are involved.

    I don’t know who to worry about more – the “right wing religious zealot” in the White House or the Palin/Tea Party. Decisions, decisions.

  10. Here is something else to ponder. Judge a person by how the treat the most poor and vulnerable. This is from an interview with David Obey. He says Obama told him he wanted Congress to cut food stamp benefits to offset his education program: “We were told we have to offset every damn dime of [new teacher spending]. Well, it ain’t easy to find offsets, and with all due respect to the administration their first suggestion for offsets was to cut food stamps. Now they were careful not to make an official budget request, because they didn’t want to take the political heat for it, but that was the first trial balloon they sent down here. … Their line of argument was, well, the cost of food relative to what we thought it would be has come down, so people on food stamps are getting a pretty good deal in comparison to what we thought they were going to get. Well isn’t that nice. Some poor bastard is going to get a break for a change.”

    http://washingtonindependent.com/91851/obey-white-house-suggested-cutting-food-stamps-to-pay-for-edujobs-funding

  11. Jill,

    Thanks … I haven’t read the links yet but you can be certain I will.

    As to Hamas … hey, teabaggers are everywhere … “a stinkweed by any other name …” (Romeo and Juliet)

  12. Thanks for the info, Jill.

    It’s bad enough that the GOBP seek to eliminate a woman’s reproductive rights, the last thing we need is for Obama to pick up the flag and lead the charge.

  13. Yes, it’s true. This is part of what I meant when I said we already have a right wing religious zealot in the WH and it’s why I’m already worried and feel Palin/Teaparty is a distraction for the left wing base so they won’t pay attention to Obama and other Democrats.

    http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2010/07/17-3

  14. now that I’m thinking of strange altered dream states….see the movie ‘Inception’…it’s a most excellent psychological thriller with a mean twist at the end….I loved it!

  16. Jill, is this true? where’s the click?

    Apparently Obama lost his nerve and his nut…..

  17. if I’d have seen that vid 15 years ago when I quit smoking cigarettes I may never have started smoking cigars 😉

  18. Obama is gaining fast on restriction of women’s rights. From planned parenthood: “The final health care reform bill included extensive restrictions on using federal funds to pay for abortion coverage, but the decision announced by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services yesterday goes beyond even these restrictions.

    The Obama administration has decided that no woman in the new high-risk insurance pools will be allowed to obtain abortion coverage beyond limited cases (rape, incest, endangering the life of the woman). Not even if she pays for that coverage with her own money.

    We need to make sure the Obama administration knows this is unacceptable. Click here to do your part and tell the Obama administration to reverse this decision.

    The high-risk insurance pools are for some of the most medically vulnerable women in the country – those with pre-existing conditions such as breast and ovarian cancer, AIDS, diabetes, and other conditions that may make pregnancy extraordinarily dangerous. These women will be locked out from abortion coverage, even if they pay for it out of their own pockets.

    Tell the Obama administration to reverse this decision immediately.”

  19. I was under the impression this activity is done at mostly male-only cafes. Maybe that has more to do with divorce issues than the hookahs proper.

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