. . . as evidenced by this story from an Associated Press contributor in Beirut.

In an incisive bit of analysis, Lebanese sociologist Dala el-Bizri, a resident of Cairo, says male-dominated societies are to blame for making women cover up. “When the condition of women on the street is unnatural, the demand for vulgarity and nudity increases,” she says.

“Come to me once more, and abate my torment;
Take the bitter care from my mind, and give me
All I long for; Lady, in all my battles
Fight as my comrade.”

That’s not one of singer Haifa Wehbe’s lyrics (that’s Haifa on the right), but rather the last verse of the ancient Greek poet Sappho’s invocation to the goddess Aphrodite, as translated by Elizabeth Vandiver. Is the imagery too warlike? Well, one Muslim critic called such performers “weapons of singing destruction.”