The Ritual Murders Known as Honor Killings

An "Honor Killing" is nothing more than a vicious, pre-meditated murder committed by a sick, twisted, demented and psychotic fundamental religionist. The victim is usually female and the perpetrator is usually male. The charge brought against the victim is bringing dishonor to the family. How is this dishonor wrought? Sometimes it is a violation of a dress code or refusing to marry a pre-arranged spouse, but the most common reason surrounds sexual activity. Of course, the sexual activity doesn't have to be consensual. Rape victims are also guilty of bringing dishonor, and they are killed as well. We'll examine this in a minute. While records of honor killings date back thousands of years, the advancement of the collective human intelligence and worldwide recognition of basic human rights should have eradicated this ritual long, long ago. However, fundamental religionists have a tendency to ignore things like human rights, preferring to remain locked in willful ignorance.

Before I get to the prominent perpetrators of this crime, Muslims, I must point out that I find it hypocritical that Christians point fingers at Islam when one of them commit an honor killing. The Quran has not cornered the market on honor killings. Commands for honor killing can be found in the Bible, as well. Leviticus 21:9 states, "And the daughter of any priest, if she profane herself by playing the whore, she profaneth her father: she shall be burnt with fire". Basically, if she commits one of the hundreds of examples of forbidden sexual acts, she gets toasted because she's brought shame to her father's honor. Sound familiar? Who can forget about Exodus 21:17, which stats, "And he that curseth his father, or mother, shall surely be put to death", as well as Leviticus 20:9 which states, "For every one that curseth his father or mother shall surely be put to death". Children being put to death for dishonoring their parents. These are only three examples of the many commands in the bible that command an honor killing. How can any Christian have a problem with Islamic honor killings when the bible allows them?

Of course, one would be hard-pressed to find a lot of examples of Christian Honor Killings, and many apologists refute the deaths that result from the severe beatings that some Christian women endure by their husbands who feel they have not been sufficiently compliant in their duty to submit and obey. These men will use biblical Scripture to back up their abuse and many women accept it, as well, choosing to remain in abusive relationships because of the Christian doctrines on divorce, etc. Thus, if you think for one minute that there have not been honor killings committed by Christians then you've got another think coming. I will give Christianity this; their wanton murder of innocent people for crimes of blasphemy has almost disappeared in the time following the Crusades. However, as I stated, a "True Christian" cannot point their fingers of disapproval at Islamic honor killings when their own bible has almost identical commands.

This brings us to the current disease on humanity known as "Islam", which is allegedly a religion of peace. Right... It's more like a religion of pieces. Honor killings occur with shocking regularity in Middle Eastern and South Asian Muslim nations. Those who try to defend Islam often blame the widespread murder of innocent women on tribal or cultural practices, stating that Islam in of itself is not responsible for it. However, the honor killing within the Muslim community originate from the core value of family honor that is prevalent in Islamic societies. All it can take to spark an honor killing is speaking with a man or a rumor of the loss of virginity. The sick and twisted bastards who commit these murders are often given extremely light sentences, and sometimes never even serve one single day in jail because they successfully argue their case before sympathetic judges, citing directives from the Quran and the Hadith.

According to Islamic tradition, a woman is property, owned by a man who is responsible for her behavior and even if she is raped she becomes the source of shame to her family. Spoiled. Damaged goods. The shame on the family can only be removed by cleansing the stain with blood, and thus, according to Islam, she must be killed. The outright misogyny of Islam is horrific in its subjugation and oppression of women, who are considered less than second class citizen. According to the Quran, women have half the rights of men and are considered less intelligent. In fact, their "prophet", Mohammad, referred to women as "awrah", which can be translated as "object of shame" due to the literal definition being "pudendum", which are the external genitals of a woman. Tits and ass, as it were. The root of the word "pudendum" is from the Latin "pudor", which means "a sense of shame". In fact, the word "Puta" (another derivative) means "whore" or "bitch" in portuguese, spanish, and Filipino. This is how the Muslim man can justify a women becoming the object of shame for the "crime" of being raped.

Hundreds, if not thousands, of women are murdered by their families each year in the name of family "honor." A recent survey showed that 91 percent of honor killings worldwide are committed by Muslims, and 84 percent of honor killings in the United States were done by Muslims. Honor killings are not honorable at all, but the result of a religion that has become a cancerous tumor on the body of humanity and like a cancer, Islam seeks to destroy everything except itself and if it finds within itself anything that stunts the propagation of it's percieved "purity", it will destroy that, as well. Hence, honor killings.

The very fact that Muslims issue death threats for cartooning Mohammed, as well as the likelihood that I will get yet another fatwa (already have six) in my inbox for writing this article, is revealing of just how twisted Islam is. Death threats for speaking out against horrific crimes and demented ideologies, as well as the practice of brutally murdering innocent women for the utterly ridiculous "crime" of blasphemy is enough evidence of how psychotic and delusional Islam is. The sight of Muslims wearing sandwich boards that suggest the beheading of anyone who states that Islam is not a religion of peace speaks for itself. I realize that Christopher Hitchens statement that "religion poisons everything" was mainly directed at Christianity (which is true), it is equally true for Islam and I wait with great anticipation for the feedback that will result from today's entry by Christians trying to defend what I stated earlier about their own holy book supporting honor killings, as well as more drivel from Muslims who try to defend their faith by saying that honor killings are not part of Islam.

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Al Stefanelli is the founder of the "United Atheist Front". For more information about the UAF, visit us on the Web, Facebook and Twitter. Al also produces "Radio Free Atheism", a Podcast.