by NoahMost Republicans I know about like to whine about Muslim Sharia Law taking over our country. In the Republican mind, it goes hand in hand with their imagined Obama-led "War On Christianity" that I posted about yesterday. The Sharia Law threat is one of their favorite and most paranoid theme songs. They’ve been singing this one (very off key) since the man they like to call Barack Hussein Obama won election and moved into the White House. They see Muslims coming to this country as some sort of conspiracy to install a theocracy. Since the majority of them think that President Obama is a Muslim, they, of course, see him as supporting this fanciful takeover.Sharia Law is Muslim religious law. It’s prescriptions are very often harsh and medieval. The dominance of Sharia, or lack there of, varies from country to country in the Muslim world, depending on a given country’s constitution and/or legal systems.Our system of law, outlined by The Constitution, is not in any way religious law; quite the contrary. We have the concept of separation of church and state, so, as long as we keep that concept, there will be no Sharia Law, of any kind, taking over the United States. In fact, and this would come as a shock to most republicans, there is no mention of God in The Constitution. That is by design, intelligent design as a matter of fact. Article VI of the Constitution says:
This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the Supreme Law of the Land; and the judges in every state shall be bound thereby.
“Supreme Law of the Land.” That seems pretty clear. So why do Republicans keep yapping about Sharia Law taking over America, a country whose Muslim inhabitants amount to 2% of the population, if, by the design of our founding fathers, many or whom were agnostics, it is proscribed that The Constitution is supreme? At worst, the best Sharia supporters could hope for would be that it would be used by the members of closed societies within the larger population, much like mobsters and gangs live, outside the law, by their own codes.Compared to our system of laws, Sharia Law is literally what some would call “a higher law” or God’s law; in this case Allah’s law since the basic tenet of Sharia is that God’s law is the source of all legal rulings for all acts. Again, our Constitution is a total impediment when it comes to the establishment of Sharia Law in our country. To refresh your memory; especially any lurking republican trolls out there, here is the first amendment:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.
That works in two ways: no special support, and no belligerence. So, as long as we don’t become a theocracy, there will be no religious law or Sharia Law that will have dominance over The Constitution.Republicans profess to be all gung ho about The Constitution. Perhaps they should actually read it, or, perhaps there is a different Constitution in Republican World. Those who put our Constitution together for us were very wary of the very idea of a theocracy running America. Many immigrants back then and right now came here to escape a theocracy. The separation of church and state, a concept that Republicans seem to have a very big problem with, protects us from the formation of a theocracy of any kind here. That includes Christianity and all other religions.The list of those Republicans who seem like they would vastly prefer a theocracy here is perhaps best exemplified by the Rev. Mike Huckabee and Sen. “Ted” Cruz who both came to the aid of Kentucky clerk Kim Davis when she cited her religious convictions as baring her from giving same sex couples a marriage license. Huckabee is one of those who believe that we can selectively choose which laws we want to obey and that we should be allowed to do so without consequence. These people seem to be in favor of Sharia Law of the Christian kind.Huckabee and his followers can scream "judicial tyranny" all they want. That comes under "free speech." However, he and his kind have decided they are above the laws of the land. They are not. If we don’t think a law is right in our country, we have another concept that the founding fathers gave us. It’s called Judicial Review. Under judicial review, actions by legislative bodies and executive actions can both be reviewed by the courts. The courts have the power, not Mike Huckabee and his ilk, not "Ted" Cruz, and not some FOX "News" wacko, to invalidate laws and decisions that are incompatible with a higher authority. In this country, that higher authority is The Constitution, not a bunch of voices you hear in your head and mistake for some sort of god or oracle.If you don’t like a law, you take it to court. You may win. You may lose, but that is how it’s supposed to work here. You don’t just get to say "that law doesn’t apply to me because of my religion." If Republicans don’t like that, perhaps they’d be happier and more comfortable in another country. Wouldn’t they love a nice, warm Muslim country? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if they would all just self-deport, tomorrow!To Davis, Huckabee, Cruz, the Davis supporters, and other like-minded Republicans (Marco Rubio and Rand Paul, for instance), there is a higher law than the laws of the United States of America. Such people believe this higher law supersedes the laws of their country, just like extreme Muslims believe similar things in their countries. In other words, people in America who believe as Davis, Huckabee, Cruz, and their like do, believe in some kind of Christian Sharia Law. There is no difference, if you believe your religious beliefs take precedence over the legal system of your country. Now, that’s what I call unconstitutional!Imagine a world where each of us could just say, “Hey, I don’t like that law” and just did whatever we want.Since we all have fantasies, here’s one of mine that is inspired by this subject. In my fantasy, I actually get to run for President of the United States and I actually get elected. Yeah, I know it’s quite a whopper of a fantasy. But, wait, there’s more. I’m President and I get to nominate a Supreme Court justice. So, what do I do? I scour the entire country for the brightest most accomplished lawyer in the land, someone with indisputable qualifications… who happens to be a Muslim. I would do this just to see Mike Huckabee’s head and entire body explode. I would do this to see Bill O’Reilly, Sean Hannity, that Duck Dynasty clown, "Ted" Cruz, Trumpf, and Chris Christie (My what an explosion that would be!) all violently burst at the seams with apoplexy.Someday, a President will nominate a brilliant Muslim to the highest court in the land but, for now, we will have to settle for baby steps. Recently, in New York City, Carolyn Walker-Diallo was sworn in as a judge for Brooklyn’s 7th Municipal District. She swore he oath with her right hand on, not the Bible, but a book that has many of the same stories and characters. It’s called The Quran. Why a Quran? Well, Carolyn Walker-Diallo is a Muslim.As soon as she was sworn in, a sickening amount of local Republican malcontents erupted with their usual hate. Online comments included:
• "Sickening. Is this America of the Middle East."• "Another piece of s--- Muslim trying to take over this country."• "This is so wrong on so many levels!!!! Our leadership has gone to Hell!!!"• "We are witnessing our nation falling to her knees."
You get the picture. The four comments I just listed above are probably the most articulate ones. Some are nothing but gibberish. It’s safe to say that Walker-Diallo can speak English and write a lot better English than many of her critics. She’s more American than her critics will ever be. There’s been a lot talk from the critics about Sharia Law taking over and a lot of that FOX "News" leadership meme. I haven’t bothered with all of the obscene ones, and, speaking of getting the picture, there have been a lot of pictures of burning Qurans and pictures of republicans apparently using pages of the Quran as toilet paper. This country clearly has a mental illness problem. At least one of its political parties does.You have to wonder if those who live in Republican World know that we have Muslim U.S. soldiers fighting against terrorists. We have Muslim intelligence agents, too, but, a Muslim judge? Hey, that’s just wrong to these nutters. Just imagine if their favorite sports team got rid of its Muslim players. Confusion in Republican World would abound.Judge Walker-Diallo did pledge allegiance to the flag of The United States Of America before being sworn in but that would never satisfy the republican mob. Celebrity nutjob Republican Allen West immediately published on his website an article titled "Obama’s America: Muslim Woman Sworn In As Judge, Look At The FIRST Thing She Does!" His site even cropped the photo so none of his sensitive readers would see the Quran.Local Republicans have since been bellowing and tearing at their hair wondering how such a thing as a Muslim judge could come to pass. Well, dummies, it’s simple, almost as simple as you. We had an election in November. The people voted for her. Majority rules. Don’t you have any faith in the American democratic process? Do you not believe in America? You are the same ridiculous fools that whined when Irish, Italian, and Jewish New Yorkers became judges or entered politics. What the Hell is wrong with you?On Judge Walker-Diallo’s campaign website, her message reads:
"I am humbled that my community has entrusted me with the immense responsibility of ensuring that EVERYONE has notice and fair opportunity to be heard in the halls of justice."
Maybe it’s that use of the word 'everyone' that bothers Republicans. Hah! Yeah, it’s that word and that other word, 'Muslim.' Walker-Diallo isn’t even the first Muslim judge here in New York. We’ve had others. Two years ago we even got a Muslim judge on the Court of Appeals. Her name is Sheila Abdus-Salaam. She’s a woman. She’s of African heritage, and, she’s a Muslim! That’s a perfect trifecta of hate for Republicans. But, this election cycle, Republicans have revved up the bigotry engine.Carolyn Walker-Diallo is very qualified for her new job. She received her Juris Doctor from New York Law School. She serves as First Vice-Chair of Brooklyn Community Board 5. She is the Board Chair of The George Walker Jr. Community Coalition, Inc., and she is a member of several other community organizations. In other words, Brooklyn’s 7th Municipal District has a judge that is about as familiar with the issues of her community as you can be. She is no outsider.Judge Walker-Diallo has been a judge now for 12 days. The Brooklyn Bridge has not been turned over to a local Taliban. The Brooklyn Nets still play professional basketball, although not particularly well. You can still get some of the very best pizza in the world in Brooklyn, for now, that is.
