"In a community consumed by grossly irrational hatred - including racism and sectarianism - economic and political freedom will never flourish." You are right Irfan. There is not a single Islamic country in the world that is a success apart for those with oil reserves. A Malaysian Muslim made this observation and wrote it in a book "The collapse of the Islamic Countries" by Syed Akbar Ali.

I quote him, "The Islamic countires have certainly collapsed -economically, politically and even socially". (pg.v)

Many of the Islamic practices are anachronistic, irrational, leading to bigotry, violent, hatred of non-Muslims. Is it rational to burn shops and churches because someone draw cartoons of Mohd? Is it rational to kill an elderly nun doing social work in a Muslim country because the Pope made a statement about Islam? Is it rational for Muslims in Thailand to stop a bus and kill 9 buddhists (14/3/07)? http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/6448615.stm
If they want Shariah law they can all emigrate to Saudi Arabia.

Banjo: "Would you really not mind if Australia became an Islamic ruled country? Would you like to live here then? I don't believe you."

Based on my own experiences of living in a Muslim country & my travels to other Muslim places in the region, I'd have to say, yes, I wouldn't mind (or Shinto, or Buddhist, or Christian). Most of these places are not the Islamic theocracies (Sharia law) they are made out to be. The rulers invoke the trappings of religion largely to pay lip-servive to the masses. I think it's a facade only. The Taliban & Iran (even in Iran there are parts that are very western) are exceptions which prove the rule. I guess the only way to see for yourself is to live in one & you'll soon realise the amazing contrast between what the MSM feed us & what actually goes on. You see a burka clad Muslim woman on the news & it is very off-putting to us. When you've run into thousands of them, it doesn't even register. It also looks really sexist too, but, the women here have lots of freedoms (not as many as ours, granted). Let's just say the reality is so different to what we are constantly told in the west. Even to tourists, appearances can be very deceptive. You need to live there to see what's really going on.

"Women oppressed, not working, not allowed out without chapperones,no education.girls covered from head to toe at beaches, FGM common practise, arranged marriages, women reduced to baby making and child minding machines, whipped or worse for adultery, or for being a victim of rape. No alcohol allowed, no preaching of other religions allowed. The list could go on infinitem. Your having us on."

Interesting, I've witnessed basically the opposite. Which Islamic countries have you lived in and travelled to? When you've lived on one, we can compare notes.

K£vin:
"Nagh, we see where all the profits go to buy that one. Good try though: they (the neocons) did it from the kindness of their hearts"

Who said imposing democracy on others (a la Iraq) was something that would necessarily benefit the locals?

It may be hard for you to imagine that neo-conservatism has an idealistic & leftist basis, after all, they're the 'bad guys' right? Don't take my word for it, check out Wiki. Take a packed lunch, it goes into a lot of detail.

RobbyH:
"TNT .... may even convert and become his very own God too."

??

"Throw religion into the mix and we have our worst nightmare. The Crusades, Ozzie style."

Crusades Ozzie style? That's a big leap of your own faith.

"Take a break from your ivory tower TNT and go visit a few of those ghettos that are recreating the horrors of other countries in our land."

What 'horrors' specifically?

Doesn't matter whether you are Lebanese Muslim in Burwood or Tongan Christian in Mt Druitt or Bulla Aboriginal in Redfern or Buddhist Vietnamese in Cabramatta or no faith Anglo in Villawood. In all cases, religion (or lack of) is not the cause of the social problems there. But you think it might be? So if only those poor Villawood folks just found some atheism or Christianity (or whatever), all would be well? I suggest that if young 'Muslims' followed their own Imams more closely, they would have more respect for their new country. So much for the Imams' influence. I would guess the young Lebanese thugs adhere to Islam about as much as I do. Zilch. They are young, high-testosterone, bored thugs who would be doing what they are doing whatever their faith. Do you think it's just the Muslim Lebanese involved in these incidents & not the Christian Lebanese? About that ivory tower....

The problem is not Islam per se, it's unbridled immigration & MC. As I've said before, change needs to happen slowly, not rushed through, for best results

pegasus, do try to less pedantic. If all you can see is the humour then that explains a lot about your post. Anyone with an iota of depth can see behind the humour. Humour or in the case of the Daily Show, cynical political riducule, is merely the vehicle. The delivery device.
Must you bring the Bible into every thread. But, hey, thanks for your comments. I'm glad I was able to trigger an emotional kneejerk defensive response. How unsatisfying. Perhaps you might consider pulling out your fence post. Surely it's been well abused.

Irf. "The point of this article is to show how bigotry is anti-liberty."

If this was the case you would have written an entirely different article. Especially one that in itself wasn't by definition bigoted.
To then mass accuse others of being bigots for not agreeing with your bigoted assessment of American political shenanigans is too much.

Irf.. to answer your reasonable question "Should a black Christian be accused of being Muslim"?

NO... emphatically.

But one could look at it this way.
-Obama was 'born' Muslim as he had a Muslim father.
-This means that technically he is 'apostate' if he is now Christian.
-That means he is under an ongoing fatwa of death according to many Islamic countries and radicals.

I think all angles of the Obama syndrome should be examined. Could he make a wonderful president ? Why not ? but would he (as all presidents are) be subject to the same influences and calls for attention that others are ? Yes indeedy.

Would their be expectations in the Black community, specially the Muslim segment for him to advance their interests ? Probably.

My major problem with Obama, (now that I know he claims to be Christian) has nothing to do with his faith, but his politics.

He was listing his political credentials at some point and while he mentioned many social themes and causes, unfortunately they all had BLACK prefixed to them.

Now..if the white US senators added a "skin color" at the beginning of each bill or initiative they supported they would be howled out of the congress as racists.

So, for me at least, I'd want to know how his 'conversion' will extend to promoting initiatives for all Americans irrespective of their color. Then.. if he suddenly 'saw the colorblind light' I'd want to know WHY "now" and not before ? Does it mean he was simply capitalizing on black disadvantage and racial grievances to further his political aspirations ?

Ah yes.. many questions, but none of them "Is he Muslim"?.....

Interesting turn of phrase from Mr Yusuf: " can a person be accused of being Muslim". How has it come about that the words "muslim" and "accused" can be now collocated even in the speech of muslims? What dreadful events, what inexcusable behaviour over the years have piled up next to the word 'muslim' to make the collocation flow so naturally, to make the word 'muslim' pregnant with guilt?

As always, the unfolding of language shows here the development of a common experience. The Vandals were not victims of relentless bigoted stereotyping. They became synonymous with what they did because it was they who did them. Stereotypes are the results of lived experience. They are ready statistics, they identify a trend, a pattern. Am I a bigot for noticing that Swedes tend to be tall and fair? Is this unfair to Sven the Short?

Today no-one is 'accused' of being a Hindu or a Taoist. Such an expression - accused of being a Hindu - would jar and halt the speaker and the listeners. There is no experience that would have made the words 'Hindu' appear next to events and behaviour that people could be accused of.

Mr Yusuf can call people bigots for noticing a pattern of dreadful events and behaviour. What is the word for those who actually enact such events and behaviour?