I posted this blog quickly today in response to a discussion on the airport security dogs thread. In my rush, I neglected to link it here, and thought you might all be interested. I think it's worth noting that most of these stories seem to be in Minnesota...a conspiracy theorist might say that they're nibbling away at our security measures in what is perceived as an out-of-the-way area, not well covered by national media....
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Because discussions of the culture clash in parts of the US (and the UK) as more Muslims move into the west, I thought it would be valuable to document some of these stories. It will also save my time in looking them up each time the topic arises! So, here is a sampling of issues that arise in the workplace. All the text below is pulled directly from the linked stories and is not my work.

Target Moves Muslim Cashiers Who Won't Touch Pork
Minneapolis (AP) ― Muslim cashiers at some local Target stores who object to ringing up products that contain pork are being shifted to other positions where they don't need to, the discount retailer said Saturday.

http://wcco.com/topstories/Muslim.cashiers.moves.2.365880.html

Shariah in Minnesota?
Radical Muslim activists go fishing in troubled waters.
Troubling incidents began several years ago, when taxi drivers at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport--about three-quarters of whom are Muslim--started refusing to transport passengers carrying alcohol. One woman, returning from France with wine, was turned away by five cabs in succession. Refusals of service now number about 100 a month, and heated altercations have erupted.

The events here suggest a larger strategy: By piggy-backing on our civil rights laws, Islamist activists aim to equate airport security with racial bigotry and to move slowly toward a two-tier legal system.

http://www.opinionjournal.com/cc/?id=110009832

Sudden Muslim Grievance Syndrome
One of the chancier things an employer in the civilized world can do is hire a Muslim.
Whether because of a false sense of shared multicultural values, sheer desperation, a lack of survival instinct, delusional optimism, or the failure to read a newspaper in the last 7 years, numerous employers in Britain, Canada and the United States suddenly confront the fact that their Islamic faithful employees seem bent on bankrupting their business enterprises.
It is not just the 5 paid prayer breaks: each of which can last up to half an hour, when you include the bathing rituals that absolutely trashes the restrooms. Muslims have exploding lists of grievances, complaints, lawsuits,and reasons why they cannot work–but for which they should be compensated anyway.

http://deathby1000papercuts.com/2008/06/multiculturalism-amok-many-emplo...

Muslim checkout staff get an alcohol opt-out clause
Islamic workers at Sainsbury’s who object to alcohol on religious grounds are told to raise their hands when encountering any drink at their till so that a colleague can temporarily take their place or scan items for them.
Other staff have refused to work stacking shelves with wine, beer and spirits and have been found alternative roles in the company.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article2558198.ece

Christian Pharmacists And Muslim Cashiers
Just a question. Is there any moral difference between these two?
Muslim cashiers won’t ring up pork products
So Dsouza was taken aback when the cashier - who had on the traditional headscarf worn by many Muslim women - refused to swipe the bacon through the checkout scanner.
“She made me scan the bacon. Then she opened the bag and made me put it in the bag,” said Dsouza, 53. “It made me wonder why this person took a job as a cashier.”
In the latest example of religious beliefs creating tension in the workplace, some Muslims in the Twin Cities are adhering to a strict interpretation of the Koran that prohibits the handling of pork products.
Instead of swiping the items themselves, they are asking non-Muslim employees or shoppers to do it for them.
Some pharmacists say no to filling birth-control prescriptions
An increasing number of pharmacists around the country are refusing to fill prescriptions for birth-control and morning-after pills, saying that dispensing the medications violates their personal moral or religious beliefs.
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“There are pharmacists who will only give birth-control pills to a woman if she’s married. There are pharmacists who mistakenly believe contraception is a form of abortion and refuse to [dispense] it to anyone,” said Adam Sonfield of the Alan Guttmacher Institute in New York, which tracks reproductive issues. “There are even cases of pharmacists holding prescriptions hostage, where they won’t even transfer it to another pharmacy when time is of the essence.”
Perhaps it’s just me, but I don’t see any difference between these actions. Can anyone see any logical rational to stand up for one while denouncing the other?
http://www.thelibertypapers.org/2007/03/25/christian-pharmacists-and-mus...