C J Morgan,

The view from behind your secular glasses makes you see all religions as equally annoying and irrelevant.

Your failure to differentiate between good and evil – true and false – ally and enemy, is exactly what the terrorist need to continue their infiltration in a our blind society.

As the PM reminded us recently, our Christian values and heritage are the foundation of what made this country great.

I don't agree that most Australians follow the Christian Faith. They may also not be following "another" faith, they may call themselves Catholic, Anglican, … they may even believe that God exists, but Australia is vastly secular if not anti-religious.

Islam wins every time it is lumped with "other religions" especially the real monotheistic Christianity/ Judaism. Islam has absolutely nothing in common.

Islam is a paganistic political movement invented by an Arab in Arabia. It is based on fear, intimidation, and ignorance of the true God. Islam's aim is to destroy Christianity, Judaism, …all isms including secularism, bringing the world - including Australia - under the rule of their god Allah.

Do some research before you drown in your secular neutrality.

Coach, surely you know that Judaism was the source of both Christianity and Islam? That all three monotheistic religions share the same Old Testament? The same god. The same prophets, history and stories? And it is those that are the source of fundamentalism in both Christianity and Islam. Looked at objectively, there’s not much difference between Sheik Hilali and Pat Robertson or any of dozens of hellfire TV Christian Evangelists advocating assassinations and war, both in the U.S.A. and Australia now that Australian Christians have their own TV station broadcasting these divisive and inflammatory messages.
Morality – good and evil etc., have nothing to do with religion. They are universal precepts that determine whether or not humanity survives. They have been common to all races at all times. Religions grab those that suit them and brag they are their inventions. The purpose of all religions throughout history is control – Christianity no less than any other. For what other reason do they amass such vast wealth, lobby parliamentarians and seek to have their religion represented in parliament? I have as much fear of Family First as I have of a Moslem candidate.
Democracy is not a good system of governance; however it is the only system available that is prepared to grant individual freedom; because it rests on that glorious foundation. Remove individual freedoms and you destroy our way of life. You destroy what has taken many thousands of years of sacrifice and strife to attain… a government that espouses justice for all and fairness.
Our country became what it is because of intelligent people who valued individuality and who refused to let religion dominate, because religions always persecute dissidents. We have the ‘Enlightenment’ to thank for our freedoms, not religion!

ybgirp,
You put it in a nutshell.
Democracy ain't the best system but it's all that we've got that will guarantee (sometimes !) individual freedoms.

To all and sundry,
Just be thankful however that in the past the Pope decided to interfere in Australian politics and decree that no Priest or Bishop of the Catholic Church could stand for Parliament.

Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Shintoism, Budhism etc are all compatible with Democracy. Islamism ain't.

cjm, We live in a democracy,muslims do not believe in democracy. Our parliament is built on democratic beliefs therefore there should be no place for the undemocratic in our parliament.
It is bad enough that we have the likes of Hilali and his opffsiders preaching opposite values to his brainwashed youthful followers. That is wrong but we must keep such people away from our law making . We do not want our democratic way of life undermined .
Too bad if you don't like it.

Proverbs,

BAGHDAD, Sept. 26 -- A strong majority of Iraqis want U.S.-led military forces to immediately withdraw from the country, saying their swift departure would make Iraq more secure and decrease sectarian violence, according to new polls by the State Department and independent researchers.

In Baghdad, for example, nearly three-quarters of residents polled said they would feel safer if U.S. and other foreign forces left Iraq, with 65 percent of those asked favoring an immediate pullout, according to State Department polling results obtained by The Washington Post.

*

-BAGHDAD — Only a third of the Iraqi people now believe that the American-led occupation of their country is doing more good than harm, and a solid majority support an immediate military pullout even though they fear that could put them in greater danger, according to a new USA TODAY/CNN/Gallup Poll

News-of a possible US military reduction in Iraq, beginning as early as this fall, is being met in Baghdad with the deep skepticism of a war-weary people who have witnessed many other American exit plans go unfulfilled.

*

Most Iraqis want an end to the 127,000-strong US presence, which they consider an occupation. But they are concerned, too, that Iraqi forces, while growing in size and capability, still can't cope with the insurgency and sectarian killings that have killed tens of thousands of Iraqis.

"I want the Americans to leave as soon as possible, so the reason to attack Iraqi troops will end, because insurgents are always accusing us of being agents and supporting these foreign troops," a first lieutenant of Iraq's Interior Ministry said Monday, while commanding a checkpoint on Baghdad's airport road.


These comments tie in with other reports coming out of Iraq, some from US researchers & some from other groups. There's plenty more but I think you get the picture. i.e. you're being had.

"Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Shintoism, Budhism etc are all compatible with Democracy. Islamism ain't. "

I can't think of a beter reason to keep religions & politics totally apart. Once the supporters of one superstition thinks it has the moral upper hand over supporters of another superstition, it can only get worse.