Wrinkly Joe: I'll see what I can do about the smug D4 bastard. He probably works in RTE, paid for by you and me.

Mairéad: In fairness to Trócaire, they've always been a bit at odds with the bishops, and more into the liberation end of theology.

I don't see that Bock has made a false analogy at all in comparing "circumcision, murder and sexual slavery" to the worst atrocities of the twentieth century.

This is horrific no matter what benchmark you're using. It doesn't take place in the context of war, but of culture which makes it tricky to address culturally. But it shouldn't. It just shouldn't. We are tolerating intolerance if we let that happen and it's unforgivable.

Isn't a girl's right to staying intact and unmutilated – frequently done to ensure a woman has no sexual pleasure and will therefore remain faithful; her right to give up her virginity to whomever she chooses; to not being indentured into sexual or domestic or economic slavery; to be free from culturally or religiously mandated terrorism of her sex; aren't these rights we should uphold every bit as much as the rights not to experience any other horrors?

We may plead religious respect and tolerance of other cultures in order to justify it, but the truth we all know, is that it's very very wrong, and to not acknowledge that is to be "tolerant" of something desperately wrong that needs to be fixed now.

Up your arse to any broadcaster who is too prurient to deal with such a bloody history of criminal subjection.

Drunk, for thisis my drunken pub quiz night (we won! Liquid prizes!). Sorry for going on. But not really all that sorry. I don't mean to be disrespectful to your point of view, Anonymous, but really, we can afford the luxury of tolerance and millions of women around the world shouldn't have to pay for that. We should be doing something to help them, changing hearts and minds, outlawing certain practices, anything we can.

Oh, I think so, without question.
I'll get on to the BCI immediately.

NONE

charming