No racing for you, Little Schuie-

Being a Formula One fan, I have been keeping an eye on the female Iranian racer who has earned the sobriquet "Little Schumaker." (Although I will be happy when Big Schuie rests on his laurels and retires - IMO it will be good for the sport) I can't say I was surprised when I hear that she has been denied the ability to DEFEND HER CHAMPIONSHIP TITLE in Iran.

( You would see a hot pic of Lelah Seddigh HERE but Blogger has taken a crap on me. AGAIN.)

From Iran Focus:

Seddigh, 29, was walking towards her 1600cc Peugeot 206 at Tehran's Azadi stadium when stewards blocked her way, citing "security problems".

The snub followed days of wrangling with Iran's racing federation over her right to take part in an event she won two years ago on her way to becoming national champion. In the lead-up to the race, she was told her participation was not guaranteed but was advised to register her name. Her registration was passed after technicians gave her car the all-clear.

But it appears that the powers that be have their turbans in a wad over the pretty and petite Lelah. What a surprise that the charter members of the Iranian He-Man Woman Haters Club would not be wanting her fine self to appear on the winner's podium. Get a load of this:

Seddigh believes she was banned to prevent her earning enough points to repeat her championship success, which won her international fame but upset Iran's male-dominated religious ruling establishment.

"Most of the federation members were not happy to have a female champion and would have preferred a man," she said. "Since I won, they have even eliminated the winner's podium. They were afraid that I would win again and they would be obliged to show me on the podium."

Seddigh says a Muslim cleric has already issued a fatwa - a legally binding religious ruling - stating that there is no religious bar to women racing against men provided Islamic dress code is observed. She plans to use the fatwa if she fails to persuade federation officials to grant her permission to take part in future races.

The federation's vice-president, Hossein Shahryari, said Seddigh had been barred because of a government circular restricting women to female-only events. That decree has now been lifted, he said.

But he added: "Women are speaking highly of themselves and that causes men who sacrifice their lives in this sport disappointment. Women are not champions in this sport, they are only participants. If they observed Islamic regulations more they would not have such problems."

And if you and your fellow woman haters would join the 21st Century, YOU wouldn't have such problems either, Hossein.

"Cool. He's a Freedom Man."

Stares, Glares for Afghan Female Drivers

KABUL, Afghanistan — Everyone she passes _ each taxi driver, every man and burqa-clad woman _ is looking at Sofia. The stares and glares are no surprise: She's female, she's driving, and she's just 14 years old.

Their numbers are few and I found this passage of the narrative quite telling.

Then there's the question of safety _ many female drivers report being harassed.

"Afghanistan is not yet at the place where we were 30 years ago. Even with lots of development we are seeing women denied an active place in society in every field," said Parwana Wafa, a 38-year-old who learned how to drive three months ago.

Wafa said she would never drive outside the capital. Even in Kabul she has to contend with men who'll drive straight at her.

"Why? They may enjoy disturbing the women. Maybe they don't like women drivers," she said in the offices of the printing company she owns.

Sofia's father says "A lot of people are against female drivers," especially in conservative regions where women are expected to stay indoors.

An incident in the western city of Herat a couple of weeks ago is a cautionary tale. Two motorcyclists who spotted a woman driver buzzed around her and cut her off, said Gulam Sarwar Haydari, deputy police chief of Herat province.

"They yelled at her, 'Why are you driving? Aren't you ashamed?'" he said.

Police jailed the two men for three hours.

"They were stupid boys," Haydari said.

Even after the Taliban fell, Herat's conservative former governor kept on enforcing the ban against female drivers for three years.

Sofia has not yet suffered any harassment. She executes a snappy U-turn at her father's command, beams and declares herself "the luckiest girl in the world" for being allowed to drive at such a young age.

She answers a question before it can be finished. "Your father is very ..."

"Cool," she says. "He's a freedom man."

You're right, Sofia. He is a cool, freedom man."