I get all of my news from twitter these days, and this means running commentary on stories I would used to avoid entirely. This whole business of Lauren Booth converting to Islam is a good example. To be honest, I am always a sucker for a "white woman converts to Islam" story. There's something very feel-good about the idea of someone finding peace and contentment in a tradition that is usually looked down on in the west. And I'm always happy to see Muslim women speaking out against sexism and traditions that limit what they can do. Islamic feminists are good people. World needs more of them.

So there's a lot I liked in her article. But there's a few niggling things that bother me about this story. The main thing is that while Booth presents herself as a more-liberal-than-thou feminist in The Gaurdian, she also works for Press TV, an international channel paid for by the Islamic Republic of Iran. I'm not sure how I feel about being lectured on liberal tolerance by someone who works for a state where women can be stoned to death for adultery.

On a less political note, most people who convert feel that something is missing in their lives. Religion fills a gap for them. But converts often end up blaming mainstream society for the emptiness they felt, as though everyone in society feels miserable too and just won't admit it. A lot of people manage to live contented, loving, beautiful lives without needing to swallow a whole load of millenea old dogma.

The left of the west needs to be careful of associating itself with the conservatives of another culture. It's a bad scene. Solidarity with the mad fuckers in charge of Iran will end up coming back to bite us in the arse.