VANCOUVER - Remembering the 1997 Blanche Royal Commission on the Status of Translucent-Canadians, Anemia Wan grows pale with anger. “That report solved nothing,” says the White Rock-based albinism activist, a past president of Albinos From Nanaimo:  “It was a total whitewash.”

Over a bowl of White Spot chowder, Wan is reflecting on her three decades’ advocacy for the Canadian unpigmented. “In this supposedly colour-blind society,” she notes, “we albinos are a nearly-invisible minority.”  

Wan, 38, says the controversial Earl’s human-rights case, wherein the restaurant chain stands accused of selling albino-themed food, proves that pro-pallidness campaigners can’t give up. “What are we supposed to do,” she asks, “just stand on equality’s battlefield, waving some kind of defeat flag? We albinos refuse to be the missing pieces of the cultural mosaic.” 

Wan’s own life suggests that, if it’s hard to be white in rainbow Canada, it’s harder to be whiter. Raised in the village of Snowball, Ontario, of mixed African-Asian and Algonquin-Scots heritage, she remembers the childhood embarassment of attending weekend ECHL hockey games, carrying her prescription parasol. The home team’s name? The Whiteout. 

The Propagandist has been blazing a trail for thinking conservatives and brass-knuckles socialists. Our online magazine of political punditry from around the world has attracted plenty of friends -- but also, saboteurs and fifth columnists sometimes masquerading as allies.

I refer here to copyright violators who scrape our website so they can paste our articles into their own websites.

I know. This isn't as exciting as going after nefarious dictators and ruthless terrorists, but it's kind of getting out of hand.

Now, don't get all huffy. I'm not referring to legitimate fans and friends who share our content the right way. You're cool. We love you. So chill.

Let's see... Buying into conspiracies of the Illuminati. Misunderstanding the most basic elements of the Catholic religion despite attending a Catholic school (bizarrely, in a hijab -- just try the same kind of trick in a Muslim private school and feel the tolerance). Believing that the 9/11 attacks were the only example of terrorism by Islamists before or since -- except that it was fake, so that doesn't count, either. Believing the Koran is the literal word of God.

Here's a good bit. In talking up the importance of researching religions, particuarly Islam (presumably, so we can submit to the true flying spaghetti monster), she says: "Go learn something! Go see! Like, you only live once. Do you want to be living in the wrong religion, so you're following the wrong religion? No! Go see who real God is! For you guys it might be Jesus, it might be, um, Baba... whatever the Hindu people believe -- the elephant head..."

Thanks for providing an example of rigorous study in comparative religion for us to follow. You've really done you're homework.

But if you don't mind, I prefer to research things that are not totally made up by immoral and insane visions of the supernatural conjured up by by snake-oil salesmen in religious garb. Perhaps your time would be better spent reading the God Delusion, or watching Seinfeld, or painting your living room, or doing almost anything else. 

Most of us are familiar with the term, "useful idiot". In this case, even the positive adjective doesn't really apply. I get the feeling that we can't just chalk this up to "youthful indescretion."

Jonathon Narvey is the Editor of The Propagandist

So much for Republican family values. American right-wing talkshow host Rush Limbaugh has tried to ruin the reputation of a brave woman by calling her a slut and prostitute, and has now suggested that she produce amateur porn so he can watch it. Seriously.

In breaking news, the ancestor of a scientist and bestselling author owned slaves in 1744.

Yes, seriously. This is the impetus behind the hatchet job by the Telegraph against Richard Dawkins. Butterflies and Wheels has a good roundup of satirical Twitter responses. Indeed, checking out the Twitter stream linking to the Telegraph article, it's clear that the vast majority of people who checked on the story see right through the pathetic attack by Adam Lusher.

Check out Richard Dawkin's response, The Sins of the Fathers

Clearly, certain primates employed over at the Telegraph haven't yet evolved into ethical journalists.

At the Rally for Free Expression, journalist Nick Cohen and scientist Richard Dawkins take on the gutless accomodation of theocratic fascism in the UK and abroad. The tide appears to be turning.

In retrospect, fleeing from one country that imposes death sentences for blasphemy to another country that has its own laws criminalizing blasphemy might not have been the best strategy. Then again, Saudi national Hamza Kashgari probably wasn't counting on the Saudis using Interpol to track him down.

Western law enforcement agencies are now doing the work of religious fanatics who spit on international definitions of human rights. When the Saudis chop Hamza Kashgari's head off, heads should also roll at Interpol.

Saudi Sheikh Nasser Al Omar weeps crocodile tears as he recommends to his king that Saudi writer Hamza Kashgari be executed for supposedly writing "shameful" comments about the Muslim prophet Mohammed on Twitter.

"I'm so sad! So very sad... that this monstrous apostate has blasphemed by tweeting 'I have loved things about you and I have hated things about you and there is a lot I don't understand about you.' I've never read such horrible words. May blessed and merciful Allah strike them from my memory and make Kashgari burn in hellfire for eternity."

Save Hamza! Sign the petition

There are consequences. We have a little thing called freedom of expression in the West that means you can't threaten someone for depicting Islam's prophet Mohammed (or in the case of South Park cartoon creators, drawing a bear mascot and suggesting that Mohammed was inside). Actually, threats are a bad idea, period. You go to jail.

That's where Jesse Morton is going.

Jesse Morton, also known as Younus Abdullah Mohammad, was detained in Morocco last May in connection with alleged threats posted on the Revolution Muslim website after "South Park" depicted Mohammad as a man in a bear suit. Prosecutors allege that Morton helped write a "clarification statement" that amounted to a further threat against the "South Park" creators by praying for their deaths and suggesting that they were likely to face the violent demise of other critics of Islam.

 

Some Muslims view any visual depiction of Mohammad as offensive. The "South Park" episode was considered a commentary on an earlier controversy over a Danish newspaper's publication of cartoons of the Muslim prophet.

Morton was transferred to U.S. custody in Rabat in October and returned to the U.S. later that month.

 

A lawyer for Morton, James Hundley, said his client plans to appear in federal court in Alexandria, Va. on Thursday to plead guilty to three felonies: conspiracy, communicating threats, and internet stalking. Each carries a sentence of up to five years in prison.

Loved this recent bit from Colbert: "Corporations are people. You won't weigh in on whether some people are people? That seems kind of racist, George."