Islam

[??????????]

Option 5.............so sue me

Yes I know I'm a hyprocrite for being such liberal and yet taking this line, but no other religion in the world today is as violent as Islam. You don't see Hindus, Bantu animists or Shintoists blowing up street cafes and bringing down skyscrapers. There's only one thing I agree with Falwell (or Franklin Graham?) on and that is Islam is a wicked religion.
They frighten me with their non-stop violence and they seem to be the only people in the world who refuse to accept the seperation of church and state.

Wow, we agree on something.

[opebo]

Option 5.............so sue me
Yes I know I'm a hyprocrite for being such liberal and yet taking this line, but no other religion in the world today is as violent as Islam. You don't see Hindus, Bantu animists or Shintoists blowing up street cafes and bringing down skyscrapers. There's only one thing I agree with Falwell (or Franklin Graham?) on and that is Islam is a wicked religion.
They frighten me with their non-stop violence and they seem to be the only people in the world who refuse to accept the seperation of church and state.

They are quite bad but christians are also a huge problem - and by far the bigger threat in the US.  And as someone else said above plenty of other religions besides these two worst ones are dangerous as well.  A good generalization is to condemn all religions that make any claim of an objective morality - they are by definition dangerous.

[DanielX]

Option 3.

[Gabu]

Kind of interesting that one's opinion of Islam appears to have absolutely no correlation with one's ideology, at least according to the posts on this board.

[phk]

It's like asking board-members whether they like the color green or not.


Liberals dislike Islam for what it is, conservatives dislike Islam because it isn't evangelical Christianity.

Whatever it is, Islam is a grave and serious threat to Western Civilization, whether your a conservative or a liberal.

[Lunar]

Kind of interesting that one's opinion of Islam appears to have absolutely no correlation with one's ideology, at least according to the posts on this board.

I think it has more to do with radicalism.  The more radical one is, the more likely one is to favor exclusion of those who are unlike oneself.

[Ebowed]

Every religion has its violent extremists, get over it.  With or without the extremists, Islam is a flawed religion that treats women as property.  That's why I voted Option 4.

[opebo]

Kind of interesting that one's opinion of Islam appears to have absolutely no correlation with one's ideology, at least according to the posts on this board.

I think it has more to do with radicalism.  The more radical one is, the more likely one is to favor exclusion of those who are unlike oneself.

I just consider intolerant people (those that believe in an objective morality) to be highly dangerous, whatever their excuse for it - Islam, christianity, etc.

[phk]

Kind of interesting that one's opinion of Islam appears to have absolutely no correlation with one's ideology, at least according to the posts on this board.

I think it has more to do with radicalism.  The more radical one is, the more likely one is to favor exclusion of those who are unlike oneself.

I just consider intolerant people (those that believe in an objective morality) to be highly dangerous, whatever their excuse for it - Islam, christianity, etc.

Correct opebo, objective morality leads people to commit terrible atrocities.

[Bono]

What are Boddhisattvas?

I wouldn't include Secular Judaism, Airel Sharon is a secular Jew.

Atheism? Enver Hoxha

I don't know too much about Jainism, Unitarinism isn't really a religion. Wicca/Neo-Paganism seems pretty harmless though, even though I think it's loopy.

You're right, unitarism is an heresy of christianity, to which many like Isaac Newton belonged.
Needless to say, this hasnt anything to don with Unitarian/Universalism.

[Lunar]

Kind of interesting that one's opinion of Islam appears to have absolutely no correlation with one's ideology, at least according to the posts on this board.

I think it has more to do with radicalism.  The more radical one is, the more likely one is to favor exclusion of those who are unlike oneself.

I just consider intolerant people (those that believe in an objective morality) to be highly dangerous, whatever their excuse for it - Islam, christianity, etc.

Just look at who y'all want to exclude.

As a militant atheist, you want to exclude all religious.    You also want to exclude anyone who correlates with being 'a religious,' such as Southerners and those who practice monogamy. 

BRTD wants to exclude anything which doesn't fit with his pseudo-hipster lifestyle.  Only families live in Suburbs, we should pave them over, etc.  His main justification for his hatred of Islam seems to be based off of some local Muslim vandalism that personally upset him.  The rest of the justification is a shallow interpretation of history that seems an after-thought to the former, shrug.

phknrocket1k is also a militant atheist.  He approves of a handful of religions that are really not that different from atheism, but that's about it.  His argument that anyone who believes in Islam is "inferior genetic scum" might be a decent testimony to his belief in exclusion.

States Rights wants to exclude those who don't believe in evangelical Christianity.  He's gone on long rants against Mormons, Muslims, and [atheist] communists.

These are the people that seem to high five each other every time any of them makes a cookie-cutter "Islam sucks lol" post.

[I spent the winter writing songs about getting better]

BRTD wants to exclude anything which doesn't fit with his pseudo-hipster lifestyle.  Only families live in Suburbs, we should pave them over, etc.  His main justification for his hatred of Islam seems to be based off of some local Muslim vandalism that personally upset him.  The rest of the justification is a shallow interpretation of history that seems an after-thought to the former, shrug.

what exactly is "psuedo" about it? And like I've explained before, my biggest problem with Islam is their repressive views on women and alcohol. When I was in high school, I remember meeting a guy who was in a band with one of my friends. It was his 21st birthday, and he was out to get as drunk as possible, since he was in the Air Force and the next day he was being shipped off to Oman, a Muslim country where all alcohol is illegal. And of course the Taliban sure didn't change things. One of the biggest events though is when I noticed that European leftists were concerned about the rise of Islam, and the threat it posed to our tolerant civilization. Like I mentioned in another thread, a "liberal" Muslim country is one that does not treat women as property. Hearing about that vandalism and hearing about other anti-Christian actions by Muslim gangs in Minneapolis gave me the impression that Islam was not at all tolerant of us, especially since I hadn't heard of any vandalizing mosques.

States Rights wants to exclude those who don't believe in evangelical Christianity.

actually he's Catholic, not evangelical.

[Cashcow]

Most religions to me are option 5.

Although Buddhism, Jainism, Atheism, Unitarian Universalism, Secular Judaism are top dogs for 1.

I chose option 3, but like nclib, I must make a distinction between mainstream Islam and fundamentalist Islam.

[Erc]

BRTD wants to exclude anything which doesn't fit with his pseudo-hipster lifestyle.  Only families live in Suburbs, we should pave them over, etc.  His main justification for his hatred of Islam seems to be based off of some local Muslim vandalism that personally upset him.  The rest of the justification is a shallow interpretation of history that seems an after-thought to the former, shrug.

what exactly is "psuedo" about it? And like I've explained before, my biggest problem with Islam is their repressive views on women and alcohol. When I was in high school, I remember meeting a guy who was in a band with one of my friends. It was his 21st birthday, and he was out to get as drunk as possible, since he was in the Air Force and the next day he was being shipped off to Oman, a Muslim country where all alcohol is illegal. And of course the Taliban sure didn't change things. One of the biggest events though is when I noticed that European leftists were concerned about the rise of Islam, and the threat it posed to our tolerant civilization. Like I mentioned in another thread, a "liberal" Muslim country is one that does not treat women as property. Hearing about that vandalism and hearing about other anti-Christian actions by Muslim gangs in Minneapolis gave me the impression that Islam was not at all tolerant of us, especially since I hadn't heard of any vandalizing mosques.

States Rights wants to exclude those who don't believe in evangelical Christianity.

actually he's Catholic, not evangelical.

Eh, you can still get drunk in Qumran...



Sir, we have a call from the Soviet Embassy...Says it's quite urgent, it's a Mr. Smirnoff...

[phk]

Most religions to me are option 5.

Although Buddhism, Jainism, Atheism, Unitarian Universalism, Secular Judaism are top dogs for 1.

I chose option 3, but like nclib, I must make a distinction between mainstream Islam and fundamentalist Islam.

You don't have to, they are one in the same.

[Cashcow]

Either way, option 3.

[Hitchabrut]

Option 2. Atheism is a religion? Also, don't you think that going obsessive compulsive over not inhaling fleas (Jainism) is less than perfect?

[Gabu]

Atheism is a religion?

It's a set of beliefs, but technically not a religion, as a religion usually implies either belief in some sort of supernatural entity or that one follows the teachings of some spiritual leader.  I suppose some forms of atheism could fit under the definition of "a cause, principle, or activity pursued with zeal or conscientious devotion", but that is not inherent in atheism itself; therefore, I don't think atheism can be called a religion.

[bgwah]

one of the last two.

[migrendel]

I cannot say that the positions of the Islamic faith are mine as well. As you all know, I am nowhere near that pure.  I am compelled to acknowledge though that for hundreds of millions of people, Islam is a valued part of their lives. This faith completes them, and I accept that.

I cannot agree with many of the specific condemnations either. Most occidental women would chafe against the strictures of the Muslim world, but for most Muslim women, this gives them a sense of devotion to their familes and to their God, and I find it difficult to quarrel with a cultural mentality that I cannot begin to comprehend. Also, most Islamic nations have not ratified the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (neither has the United States, for that matter), so how these countries treat women is none of the international community's business. They are not doing anything they have legally committed not to do.