The question was, my dear ‘Reason”. What is wrong with being “intolerant” to people who want to stone me to death?

And people have no enemies? Strewth, looks like every country in the world should just disband it’s Army, Navy and Air Force because you say that enemies do not exist. Yeah, sure. What’s it like dancing down in the garden with the fairies?

And only “Nazi’s” approve of western culture. Hmmm. You seem to have a problem with Nazis. It’s funny how people like you disapprove of “stereotyping’ and “prejudging”, but you are never slow to engage in it yourself. So, you can claim that “Nazis” are bad but scream blue murder when I do the same thing to “Muslims”. Ever heard of the word “hypocrisy”?

Western culture is the guiding force of the word. Even the Russians and Chinese have given up on their stupid economic systems and have embraced the Western model. Most of the Asian nations were smart enough to do the same and those that copied us are getting along just fine. It is the Islamic world and the black African world which are basket cases, Mr “Reason.”

On a recent Lateline programme an American commentator gave the real reason for the shocking human relations now existing between Christianity and Islam. It is not entirely religion. He did not mention the term “blowback” but the term itself was originated by the CIA who warned that their tactics against Middle East nations, and certain Third World countries could cause international friction in the future.

The above would not surprise anyone studying International Relations in our universities. As the US commentator pointed out, most Islamic terrorism has been carried out not by poor or destitute Muslims but by the more intellectual, including university students. Such was proven in 9/11 as well as the recent London bombings, and of course, every one knows bin Laden is related to the most respected of Saudi-Arabian families.

Many people desperately fed-up with news of Islamic attacks, would say either to close down our Humanities areas, or put the curriculums under surveillance, as was done in Nazi Germany and Soviet Russia.

However, this would not get to the core of the problem, but only make it worse, because former students who had learnt in the universities about “blowback” and “payback” might also need to be quietened down with a warning.

On the other hand, this could give certain of our more zealous leaders a kind of satisfaction that the mention of a car-boot holding a bomb far bigger than one to fit a haversack, might keep our public more patriotic and forced to respect those already in power.

As intimated by the American commentator - part of the answer could be for both America and Britain to get out of Middle East territory admitting they’d only been in there since WW1 mostly for oil and strategem. And if our Forum wants more evidence of American plans to overlord the globe, Muslims included, think about the pre-9/11 White House publicised New World Order as well as the Project for the New American Century (PNAC). Certainly not the way to maintain friendship between our world’s two largest religions.

Hi everyone!

Encyclopedia entries and some other academic resources on the concepts of dhimmitude, jihad and early Muslim Empires:

http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Islam-and-anti_Semitism#Dhimmi

"When Muslim armies conquered nations, they did not force people of the Book (a category including Jews) to convert to Islam. As dhimmis, Jews faced a greater level of tolerance under Muslim rule than under Christian rule."

http://encyclopedia.laborlawtalk.com/Dhimmi
"In the Middle Ages, the dhimmi concept was comparatively tolerant by the standards of the time."

Francis E. Peters, “The Early Muslim Empires: Umayyds, Abbasids, Fatimids,” in Marjorie Kelly, ed., Islam: The Religious and Political Life of a World Community (New York: Praeger, 1984), p.79

"By an exquisite irony, Islam reduced the status of Christians to that which the Christians had earlier thrust upon the Jews, with one difference. The reduction in Christian status was merely judicial; it was unaccompanied by either systematic persecution or blood lust, …[and] unmarred by vexatious behaviour."

John L. Esposito, section on “The Crusades”, Chapter 2: Roots of Conflict, Cooperation, and Confrontation, The Islamic Threat: Myth or Reality, 1999, pp. 39-41.

"Under the Muslim rule [in Jerusalem], Christian churches and populations were left unmolested. Christian shrines and relics had become popular pilgrimage sites for Christendom. Jews, long banned from living there by Christian rulers, were permitted to return, live, and worship in the city of Solomon and David. Muslims built a shrine, the Dome of the Rock, and a mosque, the al-Aqsa, near the Wailing Wall, the last remnant of Solomon’s Temple, and thus a site especially significant to Judaism. Five centuries of peaceful coexistence were now shattered by a series of holy wars which pitted Christianity against Islam and left an enduring legacy and misunderstanding."

On JIHAD:

http://members.optusnet.com.au/nayeefa/Jihad.doc

P.S. Another newspiece from BBC on Jihad:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4711003.stm

"Pakistan clerics explain 'jihad'

"Pakistan's top Muslim clerics have said it is becoming increasingly difficult for them to preach the real concept of jihad, or holy war, to young Muslims.

"The situation in Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine is radicalising young people," says Mufti Rafi Usmani, one of Pakistan's highest-ranking clerics.

"And an angry young man is in no-one's control," he said.

Other high-ranking Islamic scholars have also endorsed these views."

Peace...

Today is International Day of Prayer for Persecuted Women around the World. The top 50 countries to act with violence, or suppress the lives of women are:
1. North Korea
2. Saudi Arabia
3. Vietnam
4. Laos
5. Iran
6. Maldives
7. Somalia
8. Bhutan
9. China
10. Afghanistan
11. Yemen
12. Turkmenistan
13. Pakistan
14. Comoros
15. Uzbekistan
16. Entrea
17. Myanmar (Burma)
18. Egypt
19. Sudan
20. Libya
21. Iraq
22. Azerbaijan
23. Morocco
24. Brunei
25. Nigeria (North)
26. Cuba
27. Russian Federation (Muslim)
28. Tajikistan
29. Sri Lanka
30. Djibouti
31. Mexico (South)
32. Tunisia
33. Qatar
34. India
35. Nepal
36. Colombia (Conflict areas)
37. Indonesia
38. Algeria
39. Turkey
40. Mauritania
41. Kuwait
42. Belarus
43. United Arab Emirates
44. Oman
45. Syria
46. Bangladesh
47. Jordan
48. Kenya (North East)
49. Ethiopia
50. Bahrain

One instance: three Indonesian Christian housewives are charged with “child endangerment” for conducting three Christian holiday classes for children, penalty - five years imprisonment. The children coloured texts depicting the stories of Abraham, Noah, and Lazarus, sang Christian songs, were taught Christian prayers and the story of Jesus. The housewives provided snacks for the children and gave prises for memory work, like pencils, a towel containing a picture of Jesus, and a writing book with a picture of Noah. They also visited a theme park, a zoo; and a swimming pool and gave the children a tee shirt with the logo of their church. Most of the children were from Christian families attending the Church, but because the children also invited children from Muslim families they have violated Criminal Law Section 53, Clause (1), section 86 Law No. 23, 2002 Concerning the protection of Children, Section 55 which says: Any person who purposely uses deception, lies or enticement to make a child choose another religion not of his own free will… will be prosecuted by imprisonment for five years and / or a fine of; 100,000,000 Rupiah. (A $13,760)

Does Indonesia a democratic Muslim Nation supposedly tolerant of other religions persecute women? You bet!

TOPIC

the “anti-foundationalist” discourse of post-modernism

Yes, I’ve had long debates with our ‘post modern’ and atheistic friends on this matter. In a nutshell, anti foundationalism is saying ‘situational ethics’ and there are no moral absolutes, or foundations which have divine authority.

The obvious outcome to the honest thinking person who realizes they are in this world for ‘n’ years is to maximize their pleasurable and beneficial experiences, and seek ultimate power at the expense of every other human being (nihilism and hedonistic existentialism) Most of course don’t do this with ‘fundamentalist’ zeal, culture and the police hold them back, but it does not change the philosophical ‘foundation’ on which their shaky lives are based.

“the Judeo-Christian tradition once supported divine right monarchies and political absolutism,”

The “Tradition” might have, but Jesus said “You neglect the commands of God to observe your OWN traditions” (Mark 7)

So, the issue is not ‘tradition’ but the TEACHING of God. The concept of ‘monarch’ in Israelite society, was not with Gods blessing and this is abundantly clear, so any idea of monarchial divine right came from just one source.... the monarch.

“free-market capitalism is seen by many as morally bankrupt and a euphemism for neo-economic imperialism”

Yes, I’m one of those who sees it that way, because it is. Morally bankrupt and is without question the new form of imperialism/colonialism, old shirt, new Rinso.

“Contrary to Huntington’s hypothesis, the clash of competing national, regional political and strategic interests, and socio-economic issues, rather than civilisational hostility, play the dominant role in the conflicts between the West and the Muslim world”

A mouthful, but key words are “Political and Strategic Interests” i.e. ‘We wanna rule YOU, rather than you rule US” hmmm as if that hasn’t been around ‘since the world began” .

Nayeefa, no amount of academo-babble :) will change the body count or the reason for it:

“Fight them in the way of Allah” (i.e. If ‘Islam is being attacked in Afghanistan, all muslims in the world have a duty and a right to fight the ‘source’)