Burqa blowback

This week has a while to go yet, but we've probably heard the week's funniest story already. The self-styled Islamic State has banned the wearing of the burqa, the signifier of pious modesty for Muslim women and thus the sort of thing Daesh usually insists upon with violence, in certain parts of Mosul, Iraq, after female resistance fighters used the voluminous garments to sneak in weapons, the better to blow away jihadis. It seems that God, when he sent his revelations to the Prophet Muhammad, failed to anticipate the security problems this modest garment creates for the believers as well as the infidels. It would seem now that no one anywhere can complain when burqa wearing is discouraged on similar security grounds, but I expect to see people argue instead that those who argue for burqa (or "burkini") bans are no better than the terrorists, or that this pragmatic decision proves that the IS is not so Islamic after all. But even where the IS no longer has control, Syrian women are shucking off their burqas as soon as they get a chance. You can't help but appreciate their prudence. I'm sure they'd have some interesting conversations with their sisters outside the region who seem so eager to wear the damn things. Then again, maybe some of the piously clad women in Europe have surprises waiting for their jihadi brethren....