Burqinis

A Muslim woman garbed in a head-to-toe swimsuit — dubbed a "burquini" (or veilkini in our local store) was barred from swimming in a public pool in France.  Religious garb is a heated issue in France which has about 5 million Muslims.  Outward religious symbols such as the burqa and hijab, along with large crosses and various other items have been outlawed in public schools and now apparently pools.  Read the full story from the Baltimore Sun.  

Is it because Muslims are perceived to have more bacteria, or that their suits do not fit French definitions of 'swim suit'?  It seems to me the French lost their moral ground for enforcing standards on swimming attire, since it seems they prefer things alnaturall! (incidentally, when the situation is reversed, and the French come to swim in the Middle East,they are allowed to wear (or not wear) what they wish... though of course there are plenty of stares to go around)

I'd like to see the research that says wearing a speedo introduces less bacteria into a pool than more baggy swim suits.  I get the prohibition from swimming in clothes that haven't been washed since who knows when... but come on, these are bathing suits!  Frankly, I think the more fabric holding back the water from everyone's 'unmentionables' the better.   

I'd like to suggest an objective equation for the pool administrations in France like:

(Amount of skin showing in cm²)?² + (surface area of fabric mm²)?³ /(level of discomfort with religious symbol (1-10 scale)) = <10 official approved swimsuit, >10 not approved swimwear

Now I've gone too far... that would be too much work.  Let's just stick with the more subjective 'bacteria' excuse.