ALTRAV,

Prejudice is an irrational, inflexible, attitude
toward an entire category of people. It's always
rooted in generalisations and so ignores the
differences among individuals. Therefore someone who's
prejudiced against Muslims, Jews, Chinese, Indigenous
Australians, women, and many others, will have a
negative attitude towards these people in the firm
belief that they ALL share the same supposed traits.

Islam is one of the world's major religions. It claims
the allegiance of a fifth of the entire human population.
Many Westerners often think of Islam as an Arab religion.
Mos Muslims are not Arabs.

The largest Muslim populations are in Indonesia and India
and there are even large concentrations of Muslims in
China and the former Soviet Union.

Islam is the 2nd largest religion in Europe after
Christianity and it competes with Christianity
in many black African countries.

To paint them ALL with the same prejudiced brush when there
is linguistic and cultural differences is just pig-ignorant.

Over the past decades, religious fervor has erupted in the
Islamic world in general and in the Middle East in
particular. This fervor has been inspired by fundamentalism.
To many Westerners Islamic fundamentalism seems like an
almost scandalous return to medieval morality.

It conjures forth images of women behind veils, of adulterers
being stoned, of thieves having their hands cut off, of
public floggings and executions, of martyrdom in holy wars,
and in extreme cases, of political fanaticism exemplified in
aircraft hijackings and terrorist bombings.

This picture is rather distorted, for it is based on what
is newsworthy rather than what is typical.

What do any of us really know about the religion? How much
detail do we know about our own faiths and theology?
Let us look to ourselves before we condemn others - and
their behaviour.

mhaze,

The fact that you are unable to find compassion on this
forum does not surprise me at all.
Start with your own posts and see how far you get before
looking for faults in others.

Foxy,

once again YOU assume too much, and still incorrectly, as well.
YOU believe what YOU have written, that is clear and I get it.
YOU have made a generalisation, I can understand that too.
What YOU need to now understand and listen too once and for all is, I have repeatedly told you I do not hold the whole of a race, creed or religion responsible for the actions of a few mal vivants within.
In repeating myself, for the umpteenth time, 'the reason these entities are held or viewed with suspicion and such contempt is because the miscreants are well known to their friends, brethren and too many people to imagine them so isolated that they are not known and yet none of them will speak up and give them up'.
And so it is that the whole group are held in contempt or suspicion, because of the sins of a few bad ones amongst them.
Now this may be repulsive and abhorrent to YOU, but it helps those who feel strongly about this situation, to understand and move forward.
Until the guilty ones with venomous hearts and minds are brought to account and the killing of and focus on the "infidels" and non believers stops, there will not be normalising or acceptance of such groups and people.
This is human nature, the truth, not pretty, not what you want to believe, but unfortunately, what I have been trying to get through your thick skull for as long as I can remember, and this is NOT MY OPINION, it is that of the very people you charge with in-sighting hatred and rejection of these groups.
The "Infidels".

Well said Foxy, I totally agree. I have previously mentioned a Turkish mate of mine, over 30 years. He's Muslim as is his wife and their two daughters. When the kids were young, Hal would put up the Xmas tree. I said once, "What that? You're a Mussie" His answer; "Jesus, its Xmas Paul, my kids aren't going to miss out.... you having another scotch?" Hal is no more a danger to society than his cat is." It scratched me once.

If you were a Muslim or Chinese or whatever, would you want to work for a red necked racists anyway. After a week of his barbs and insults you might really want to kill him.

ttbn; "According to one story" me thinks you watch too much Fox News. And listen too much to Dangerous Doctor Donald.

Dear Paul,

Thank You. Your rationality as always is appreciated.

Unfortunately, the Murdoch press and other similar
media outlets are full of this illogical type of
hype.

The tendency of "collective blame" when the whole are
punished for the actions of a few is a trend currently
being seen in United States and European political
discourse.

To me there's nothing logical about condemning millions
of people who are spread across the globe and are
unrelated to each others except by religious tradition -
for the actions of a few.

We wouldn't blame all white people for the nutter who shot
at Muslims in New Zealand. And others like him who have
committed atrocities, killings, and bombings.We don't
blame all Catholics for child sexual abuse, or all
homosexuals for AIDS, or all Chinese for COVID -19, and
the list goes on.

Collective blame does not exist in a vacuum. It is
correlated with many other ideas and behaviours. Jews were
blamed for so much. As were other religious groups.
One has only to study history.

Also saying that Muslims do not speak up - is simply not true.
The Muslim communities and their organizations, as well as
Muslim leaders, have spoken
loudly - time and time again. They have come forward,
held meetings, appeared in the media, and made their
positions clear. They have done all that anyone could
possibly do - to condemn the actions of extremists.

It's a very disturbing trend that this sort of attitude is
still being espoused in today's day and age. Thankfully
by a very small minority.

Foxy & Paul1405,
Just be careful not to bite your tongue, there's no antivenene for you two.

individual,

In YOUR case it is better to bite your tongue
than to eat your words!