You Got A Problem? Islam Has A Solution

I know the Islamic religion LOOKS repressive, but you can find a lot of freedom if you just shop around for the right mufti (religious leader) who is willing to issue the right fatwa (religious decree).

CAIRO: First came the breast-feeding fatwa: It declared that the Islamic restriction on unmarried men and women being together could be lifted at work if the woman breast-fed her male colleagues five times..... The breast-feeding fatwa came in mid-May. A religious scholar who headed the department of the teachings of the Prophet at the Foundation of Religion College in Al Azhar University wrote that there were instances in the time of Prophet Muhammad when adult women breast-fed adult men in order to overcome the need for women to veil in front of men. "Breast-feeding an adult puts an end to the problem of the private meeting, and does not ban marriage," wrote Izat Atiyah. "A woman at work can take off the veil or reveal her hair in front of someone whom she breast-fed."

Unfortunately, where I work, the Muslim women -- who look like European super models -- are already unveiled. But, it seems that all fatwas are not equal.

The ruling was mocked on satellite television shows around the region, and quickly condemned at home. He was suspended from his job, mocked in newspapers and within days issued a retracting saying it was a "bad interpretation of a particular case."

And that's one of the problems with Islam. There is no central authority. There is no Muslim Pope who has the sole authority to issue religious decrees. Any nut can issue any kind of fatwa based on any kind of interpretation of the Koran and Hadith -- or, perhaps a few dinars slipped under the table?