Freedom of Speech

EDIT:PLEASE READ CONFUSED'S LATEST POST - he expresses my exact views about fanaticism brilliantly and that's just what I wanted to convey from my 'Whispers of a Veil' post. Take it as you like it folks!

Many people are afraid to speak out, to stand up for themselves, to question the unquestioned, to challenge the dangerous, to doubt their own...but I'm not. I believe in freedom of speech and myself, and even if it's going to hurt my best friend or my mother, I will say what I feel is the truth and what I believe in. Especially if it's something that violates human rights, I don't care if it's my blood, my race, my country or my friend that's the reason for it, I will speak out. I can't stand hypocrisy and I will say so and I will give you my story. If you can't take it, or if you think I'm wrong, give me your valid reasons here...if you keep silent and tell everyone else that you are hurt, then you have either misunderstood me or you think I'm cruelly right or you are too afraid to speak out here or you are one who don't find freedom of speech right.

People, my 'Whispers of a Veil' post has disheartened few of my close friends in the blogland. But that doesn't take back any of the words I said in that post. I said it cos I know what I was talking about and I don't believe I hurt anyone's feelings there except the fanatic muslims (not the good muslims). I was talking about muslim hardliners that treat women like second class citizens and punish them brutally if they don't wear the hijab and that's about all. I was not generalising ALL muslims. My friend Jackal has written a post as a reply to that. I respect what he has to say about it, cos that's what he believes. However I choose to disagree with him on some points but that doesn't make us enemies. I hear from his blog that my friend Sebia was deeply hurt by my post and has written a post about this (which I haven't fully checked yet 'cos I didn't even know about it till I heard it from elsewhere and Sebzz didnt leave a comment here either). My point is that no one deserves to be punished for not following some dress code. If someone says that Westerners are bikini-clad/naked people with no shame, well they don't get punished for that, do they? Cos people should be given the freedom to wear what they want, and that was my point and nothing else Sebz! Sebz, you should have written me a comment here, instead you went and wrote a huge judgmental post about me, and disabled comments too. Why?? Did you ever read my 'A Faithless Journey' post? Yes I could have asked you (I was not in touch with you for so long and I was under the impression that you don't visit my blog for quite sometime now..anyways) before I wrote the post but nothing would have changed in the post Sebz...cos what I said still stands as the truth for me. I spoke to my Muslim friends here and they read it too...they were not offended by it cos my aim of the post was more about the dress code and the punishings , not the Muslims alone. How can you get so hurt when I'm not even talking about the good muslims? You got to read my posts clearly and get the point before crashing down to conclusions Sebz. And na I don't get some adrenaline rush from making fun of anyone's religion here on the net - thanks for assuming that about me. If there's anyone who respects all faiths, then I'll top the list but na I won't tolerate people committing crimes in the name of religions - SORRY! And no I cant understand why you're hurt by this - cos if someone came and told me that the Hindu/Catholic extremists are blood-thirsty criminals, I'd agree with them instead of feeling sorry for my faith and my people or even defending them - cos crime shouldn't be tolerated irrespective of faith. If all of the good muslims out there like you, stopped praising these hardliners and for once stood up for human rights, then we might not have so many women suffering in silence.

Anyways, what I intend to convey to everyone, yes everyone out there, is that I will write what I feel in my blog and as it can get very personal, if anyone is hurt by my thoughts here, I really can't help that...cos this is me, and this is how I feel. If you have to say something, say it here, right on my face. If you don't like me or my thoughts, you're most welcome not to read my blog - you got a choice here. Where I live people value freedom of speech and we argue openly, healthily and in a civil manner. I'm not here to please anyone and I will speak what I feel and I shall speak the truth. And you are entitled to think anything about me. Thanks everyone!