Major Dhimmitude

Robert Spencer at Dhimmi Watch received an email from an American officer in Iraq on a disturbing incident there:

Greetings again from [Iraqi location]. I am a daily reader and just wanted to share an experience I had yesterday at a weekly meeting given by the [military] staff to the [military officers].
I arrived in typical fashion, early to get a seat and grab a beverage prior to the rush. When I approached the small fridge to grab a soda, I was told by another staff officer “sorry, no drinks, it’s Ramadan”. Incredulously, I replied, what!!!?. Turns out, we had 2 visiting Iraq Generals briefing a future operation, and in an effort to be culturally sensitive, the order was put out there would be no drinking in the presence of the Iraqis.

Greatly displeased, I drove on and found my seat. This Major was on a mission, there would be no drinking as I watched her chastise numerous officers. She then came to a man of Middle Eastern appearance in civilian dress who took up a seat behind the yet to arrive Iraqi Generals. He pulled out a cranberry juice from his pocket, and was quickly told he would not be aloud to drink anything during the meeting. He was clearly agitated, but put the juice away. It apparently slipped by the dutiful Major that the man she was correcting was an Iraqi translator who was Muslim! He was the Iraqi Generals personal translator.

I took a moment to ponder what I had just witnessed. An American infidel enforcing Islamic tradition on an apparently secular Muslim! I was truly in bazzaro world.

Now, I know when you're "occupying" another nation with a distinctly different culture from your own you should be sensitive to their laws and customs, but is this going too far???

I can understand the "no pork" and "no alcohol" regulations for our GIs, but to enforce a FAST on them when in the presence of Iraqi officials? This female Major needs to get a boot up her butt for her politically correct dhimmitude. Why the hell isn't she wearing a burkah then?

Wonder what's the morale of those under her command?

I always find Dhimmi Watch more painful to read than Jihad Watch. And it's precisely because of incidents like these that makes me wonder how the hell we will ever win the war against Islamofascism.