The church should not dictate to the state. And the state has no business — none — dictating to the church.

If you disagree with that, or if you still need to be convinced that there is properly a wall between church and state, look to Germany. About two weeks ago, a court in Cologne ruled a doctor had caused “bodily injury” to a Muslim boy by circumcising him. In effect, the German court determined that circumcision amounted to a criminal act.

The Cologne case concerned a four-year-old boy whose parents had him circumcised, following which there were minor complications. The court held that the boy’s “fundamental right to bodily integrity” outweighed his parents’ desire to follow the tenets of their faith. If the boy wanted to get circumcised later on in life, the German court declared, his religious freedom “would not be unduly impaired.”

Muslims and Jews — in Germany and around the globe — felt otherwise. As news coverage about the boy’s case spread, outrage grew. In the Muslim and Jewish faiths, circumcision is a solemn requirement. For Jews, it represents a literal commandment from God; for Muslims, it is a “sunnah,” or practice, of the Prophet Mohammed.

The Cologne court ruling is not enforceable in other German jurisdictions, but will almost certainly persuade German doctors to decline to perform circumcisions, fearing legal consequences. In Germany, many Jewish and Muslim parents have reported that they are now uncertain how, or if, they can get their sons circumcised.

The ruling “places an intolerable burden on the free exercise of religion by Jews and also by Muslims who practice male circumcision as part of their religious faith,” said Abraham H. Foxman, the legendary national director of the Anti-Defamation League. “An unprecedented and dramatic intrusion on the self-determination of religious communities,” said the leader of Germany’s Central Council of Jews in a statement.

Meanwhile, Jewish and Muslim leaders met a few days ago in Brussels to denounce the Cologne court decision. “Circumcision is an ancient ritual that is fundamental to our individual faiths, and we protest in the strongest possible terms this court ruling,” the Muslim and Jewish clerics said. There are 100,000 Jews and four million Muslims in Germany.

Fearful that the court’s verdict could bring back unhelpful memories about Germany’s Nazi past — as it already has — Chancellor Angela Merkel said that, unless the decision is overturned, Germany would be regarded as a global “laughingstock.” In fact, it is worse than that.

Comments (22)

I honestly don’t know if this column is true, but if it is, Trudeau’s lucky to have a guy like Butts in his corner. Gerald and I have worked together on McGuinty campaigns for about a decade, and he’s one the smartest guys in Canadian politics.

Like I say, a good start.

Comments (14)

From the Yukon News:

Ottawa continues to turn down the Carcross/Tagish First Nation’s calls to negotiate a financial transfer agreement.

With concerns that it will be broke by the fall, the self-governing Tlingit group looked to its citizenry for help.

Luckily, Warren Kinsella’s daughter is a First Nation member.

“She has a copy of the self-governance treaty hanging on her bedroom wall,” the pundit and former Chretien spindoctor said in an email to the News on Tuesday.

Kinsella has a history of battling Conservatives. And along with being a staunch Liberal, he also co-founded the Daisy Consulting Group, which “has a lot of involvement with aboriginal files, right across the country,” said Kinsella.

“Since my daughter is a citizen of CTFN we felt we needed to help… to shine a light on what the Harper government is doing to this proud First Nation. We intend to help them tell their story to the whole country, and force the Conservative government back to the table. We’ll do whatever it takes.”

Talks between the First Nation and Ottawa came to a stalemate with Ottawa in May 2011. The First Nation’s last financial transfer ran out that March.

Carcross/Tagish turned down an offer on the table for more money.

There was no negotiation, said Danny Cresswell, the newly elected chief of the Tlingit group.

Comments (32)

Oh, and there was a reason I didn’t post a single word about that much-anticipated hearing yesterday. There’s a reason for that.

Some people in the West end aren’t going to like it.

Comments (5)

…sounds slightly oxymoronic, to me.

In any event, I think Nanos also is seeing evidence of a bit of a honeymoon-to-come: if Justin Trudeau runs, as I hope he does, I wager you’ll be seeing more of this phenomenon. That is, the Liberal Party finally moving up again. Not dramatically, but enough to matter.

Comments (5)

Together! Right here!

I surmise it was a wildly-successful meeting.

Meanwhile, Wildrose (and Hudak’s Tea Party North) will continue to bray and screech about gays burning in Hellfire, and about how white candidates are better than non-white ones. And pollsters will continue to get things wrong, and journalists will continue to give them the benefit of the doubt.

Comments (0)

…stopped.

If some big pile of concrete lands on me, it’s been a slice. Vote Liberal, etc.

Comments (12)

Comments (103)

If Trudeau runs for leader, and wins, the Libs will be doing even better.

Then again, this is a poll, and I don’t believe in polls so much anymore. Nope.

Comments (23)

“Hill Times Wise Guy, Sun columnist and seasoned Liberal strategist Warren Kinsella has managed to take a break from his many side projects to write a book.

Fight the Right: A Manual for Surviving the Coming Conservative Apocalypse is set for release on October 2, but diehard fans can pre-order the 256-page tome online through Amazon. The book promises to be a political survival guide for the “nasty, brutish and short-sighted era in which we find ourselves, ”and offers progressives insights into the inner workings of the conservative mind. The book also promises to be a guide for those planning to launch a progressive advocacy effort, and gives historical examples of progressive campaign victories ranging from Jean Chrétien to RFK Jr. And that’s not all — Mr. Kinsella promises to forcefully argue that Canada’s Conservatives cannot be defeated “until a United Left emerges.”

Conservatives shouldn’t be scared away by the title, though. In a posting on his blog, warrenkinsella.com, last week, Mr. Kinsella wrote,“I don’t hate Stephen Harper…that doesn’t mean we agree with many of his policies — we of course don’t — but we don’t see the man as evil incarnate, either.”

Seriously though, get ready for the apocalypse.”

Comments (8)