I note that Boaz has demonstrated his usual commitment to the truth in his latest hateful offering. He neglects to say that the Islamic school expelled the perpetrators of this incident, and called in "...a senior imam to tell its 650 Muslim students that the Bible and Christianity must be respected. "

While I've become accustomed to Boaz's regular expressions of hypocrisy and mendacity in this forum, this seems to be a cruder version than most. Isn't there something in the Bible about bearing false witness?

Hi DB,

Interesting example of men behaving badly. "Muslim boys in Melbourne from an Islamic school urinate on, spit on, and burn a Bible at a school camp."

Pretty sick, I agree. Kids tend to follow the example of their elders. Where on earth would they learn this behaviour from?

BrainDrain,
I agree, we certainly have our share of weird practices here. What sensible adults would let their kids go to 'schoolies week' at Surfers? TRTL has mentioned the irresponsible parents that don't seem to have any control over their kids, or care what they do, but would swear black and blue that they love them.
I could add a few more to your weird list, like magistrates and judges tha hand down ridiculously light sentences for serious crimes.
I don't have the answers and shake my head in wonderment. Perhaps we have had it too good for too long and need a sharp awakening.

That said, I do not think we should allow it to worsen by allowing more alien practices into the country. I don't particularly care what people in other countries do, but I do care about having an harmonious society. I do not want us to be like some European countries and England, where there is major social problems.

As you said, we cannot claim to be multicultural. The best claim we have is that we are semi-multicultural.

I think the whole matter needs to be re-appraised and maybe the money now spent on MC be used to promote integration and English classes, if that is what is needed

Boaz,

As an Australian Muslim, I was appaled by the article re the Muslim students and the Bible and I believe the school did the right thing expelling these students.
The Bible and the Torah are Holy books in Islam and desecrating any of them is like desecrating the Quran.
As a self proclaimed expert on Islam you should know this but as usual, you use the article for taking cheap shots on Islam and Muslims.

Your attitude is unethical, unAustralian and un Christian. Did Jesus teach 'The truth shall set you free' or its OK to lie, deceive and mislead?

May you find your peace,

T

Gee, you guys are starting to renew my hope for intelligent thought actually existing in the world... did you all forget to take your Angry pills this morning or what? : )

I mean, posters actually defending Islam against the railings of an unChristian christian??

Sorry, but I really am not used to that kind of standard of behaviour here, surely Obviously has some words of 'wisdom' to restore my sense of indecency in OLO?

BOAZ-D
Re: seeing the Light: I know you saw my discussion article since you were helpful in it's birth pangs but i refer you to it again in order that you see one particular Light (Values) more clearly...

http://forum.onlineopinion.com.au/thread.asp?discussion=253#4559

WE CANNOT leave something this important to the future of this once great country to our politicians alone - WE NEED to do it for OURSELVES!(seems it still might just have a chance from the most recent posts - I was beginning to doubt)

Lets claim those Values listed in that discussion as Australian Values for ourselves and share them around with others - get the whole country talking more about them and what they actually MEAN to us and our families and let the politicians catch up and jump on our bandwagon as usual once they can see a few more votes in it for them (then we can tell them where to stick 'their' values and finally begin to run this country for ourselves and not leave it for them to rape and make profit from).

We should not just respect old folk and schoolkids we should earn respect by HAVING respect for ALL! We should learn about a culture and why it holds the beliefs it does before mindlessly picking things that we cannot make sense of ourselves and using them to denigrate others of whom we have only a one-sided view.

(That's why we NEED MC - to be able to understand MORE those whom we might otherwise fight a war against if the likes of Bush and Bonsai tell us to).

bennie,
I sense your question was slightly(?) rhetorical and i believe you already know the answer yourself but i would just like to point out for any who have forgotten or allowed their personal confirmation bias to eliminate it from their consciousness - US Army soldiers at Abu Gharaib were reported in Australian media as ripping up the Koran and flushing it down the cell toilets in front of Muslim prisoners .

For what reason, other than the same reason those muslim kids had(biased hatred), I cannot say.

Like i have said before... ALL cultures have their sicko's. Our culture is no Angel, no matter how much some insist it is, which is one of the reasons i don't denigrate the culture of others and insist on pointing out our own failings before those of others as Christ actually taught some of us to do, but most hypocrites prefer not to do.