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A charity run by an extreme-right group in the south of France has caused anger by serving the homeless only pork soup, which Jews and Muslims do not eat.

The soup kitchen is set up one night each week in the port of Nice and has drawn numerous protests.

The charity has defended offering what it calls traditional cuisine to French and European homeless people.

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http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4557034.stm

It would make them look more like John Brown (A hero of God who went around Kansas smiting evil slave owners in their sleep) than like Al Qaeda.

[ 25 December 2005: Message edited by: Ghost of the Navigator ]

I don't eat porc though, I'm wondering, is it an expensive meat? I'm curious if they would have the capacity to feed more people if they went vegetarian.

Muse,
Non-muslims can eat Hallal food just fine.

[ 25 December 2005: Message edited by: fast_twitch_neurons ]

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Originally posted by Ghost of the Navigator:
Why can't Hamas and similar militant groups go after these guys?

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Originally posted by muse:
Would a Muslim charitable food organization gather and serve food geared towards all palates,in France,considering the current climate?

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I suspect nearly every palate in France is capable of handling a menu limited to "Things Other Than Pork".

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As Fast Twitch pointed out, without Rabbinical oversight, Orthodox Jews would not be able to handle this. I hesitate to go so far as to say "anyone that keeps kosher" since kosher can range everywhere from "I don't eat bacon at home" to ultra-orthodox.

Traditional Muslim cuisine doesn't cut it.

Does anyone know if the simple fact that a knife was used to cut pork makes anything it touches unclean and inedible to a Muslim?

Having said that, I suspect the group running the original soup kitchen knows exactly what they are doing. While they could have done worse (much worse) by simply adding pork byproducts to the meals they were serving without telling anyone it looks like they are definitely making a statement.

[ 25 December 2005: Message edited by: abnormal ]

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Its beyond nasty its racist

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I'm going to get accused of being pedantic but Islam is a religion, not a race. The fact that we in the west tend to think of Arabic people when we think of Islam doesn't change the fact.

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I see your point, I still think the word racist sums up hte discrimination and hatred inherent in the actions of this group.

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Charity does not need to be accepted,and is often directed at one segment of the population.Perhaps an area farmer donates the pork.Tensions in france seem very high but casting doubt on a charities motives is not helpful.

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However, if the charity is in fact run by a right wing extremist group, then the motives are clear. THey are purposefully going out of their way to tick off the Muslim population, which is huge in France. At least thats what I gathered from a glance.

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Originally posted by fake_oxygen:
However, if the charity is in fact run by a right wing extremist group, then the motives are clear.

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I have agreed, above, that the more basic problem is an economy that leaves many people needing soup kitchens. Further, I'm a democrat: if fascists and racists want to run purposefully exclusionary charities, I would never argue in favour of laws to stop them.

If that is happening, though, I would argue all the more publicly against fascism and racism, not to censor but to educate, the first duty of every committed democrat, of course.

[ 26 December 2005: Message edited by: No Yards ]

By "them," muse, I take it you mean French people?

muse: there are few foods that are not "customary" to the French. Och, what the French can do with food - any food, anyone's food, all food - yay, food!

Rufus already said this above: it is hard to imagine the French palate that could not adjust to a diet without pork once in a while.

M'self, I like pork pretty much, but I would never think of inviting guests over without checking on dietary restrictions. Some of my friends could die eating the stuff I normally cook and consume (like bread, eg), and I don't want that, so I try to be civilized about these things.

And you?

[ 26 December 2005: Message edited by: skdadl ]

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I see your point, I still think the word racist sums up hte discrimination and hatred inherent in the actions of this group.

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Originally posted by Ghost of the Navigator:
Why can't Hamas and similar militant groups go after these guys?

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This kind of comment is really not necessary.

Also, Dad and muse are trolling, and they have almost exactly the same IP address, writing style, typos, and point of view. They're going bye-bye.

[ 26 December 2005: Message edited by: Michelle ]

The group in question is definitely a far-right, racist group.

There are many Muslims in Nice, also many Jewish people have retired there, and no, they are not all affluent by any means.

[ 27 December 2005: Message edited by: lagatta ]

1 -- pointing up the absurdity of religious injunctions

2 -- fostering racism, since in the French context 'religious' means Muslim, and Muslim means North African-descended.

The first point is the rational version, but it's surely pretty clear which is the real point it's dressing for. Smooth move, calling for disdain of the Jon Stewart variety, not debates about the rational point or hot indignation, both of which serve the Front national types.

Alsace has an ancient Jewish population (like all the Rhineland) and is of course home to a growing number of Muslims. It is also a gathering point for boneheads from both banks of the river, as anti-Nazi laws are not as draconian as they are on the German side.

There have been many protests against the "tradition and identity" based soup kitchen, by anti-racist and human rights groups in Strasbourg.