Question of beard and religious freedom unites groups who’ve been opponents
http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/courts_law/question-of-beard-and-religious-freedom-unites-groups-whove-been-opponents/2014/08/31/b3c80f36-310e-11e4-a723-fa3895a25d02_story.htmlBy Robert Barnes Reporter
Robert Barnes has been a Washington Post reporter and editor since 1987. He has covered the Supreme Court since November 2006.
August 31 at 8:17 PM
Religious groups and some civil libertarians were often at odds during the last Supreme Court term, but they have found common ground on a religious freedom case that the justices will take up as one of their first orders of business in October.
It involves a quarter-inch of facial hair.
Robert Barnes has been a Washington Post reporter and editor since 1987. He has covered the Supreme Court since November 2006. View Archive
Gregory Houston Holt is an Arkansas prison inmate who is also known as Abdul Maalik Muhammad. According to his brief to the court, he feels his Muslim faith requires him to follow this dictate: “Allah’s Messenger said, ‘Cut the moustaches short and leave the beard (as it is).’ ”
Holt said he is willing to compromise with prison officials and keep his beard trimmed to one-half inch. But Arkansas corrections officials allow beards only for dermatological conditions — not religious beliefs — and even then they must be trimmed to one-quarter inch.
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Beard, no beard? Who cares? This is just another element of control, not just in religion, but in society in general.
Frankly, I find the hair restrictions in Islamic, Jewish, and Sikh (e.g.) traditions a bit bizarre. But I would not malign a person who attended those faiths mere because of their hair styles.
My one exception to this rule is Phyllis Schlafly. There is no excuse for this
(nor for her political and religion positions. Looking at her dress, one wonders what she made from the rest of the curtains.)
And an equally horrible political position, based entirely on religion.
Plus, her dresses look like recycled curtains, or upholstery, or something other than clothing fabric.
since I stopped working. I never had time for it before and everything was a chore.
Now I love meal planning, cooking, entertaining, gardening, even doing the dishes.
But that is my choice.
I was surprised recently to find that she was still alive and still squawking. An era will hopefully end when she goes.
Of course, there's the iconic curtain dress.
Here's the video:
She was a hero of mine as a child - a woman who seemed unafraid to say anything.
The curtain dress is funny. And don't forget the dress curtain!
That's two strikes in as many posts.
What on earth shall I do.
Maybe I will freak out and report you!
Guffaw!
Nah.... he's 70-something.... which just makes one realize how young he was when he was doing amazing stuff in Las Vegas and on TV.
