all these recent anti-islam threads are missing the point.

[UpsideDownFlag]

yes, fundamentalism is bad. but the conflict isn't The West vs. Islamic Fundies, it's Progressive Values vs. Fundamentalism of any kind- Christian, Muslim...whatever. yes, a 14 y/o dying from lashes for breaking ramadan is bad, but that doesn't make Islam the enemy. It just means we need to be wary of fundamentalism from any source.

just my two cents.

[Name removed]

1. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[BonjourUSA]

9. And the monotheism is the worst religious form

Especially when this god is a speaking one, and when he doesn't say the same bullshits to everybody.

[QC]

10. Now there's a winning platform!

We should go with that one. Why lose only thirty or forty states when you can lose all fifty?

[New Democrat]

17. Thats it I'm leaving

If this place is gonna censor me I don't want to be here.


By the way the deleted message is mine and I said that all religion is bad including Islam. Religion has done more harm than good and the world would be a better place without religion. That is my opinion and I do not feel that I am bashing a specific person in stating this. I'm just stating a broad problem with humanity. But I will not sugar coat my opinions to not offend people.



I'm gonna go find a real progressive forum now. Thanks to everyone who welcomed me here, but I can't stay here. I believe in freedom of speech and obviously the message board owners don't. I'm sorry it has to be this way.

[shockra]

21. A forum for The End of Faith

From what I've read on his reader's comments page, it looks like there may be a discussion forum up on Sam Harris's website soon. He's the author of the recent book The End of Faith: Religion, Terror and the Future of Reason.

This is the description of the book on his site:

http://www.samharris.org

The Clash of Faith and Reason

This important and timely book delivers a startling analysis of the clash of faith and reason in the modern world. The End of Faith provides a harrowing glimpse of mankind’s willingness to suspend reason in favor of religious beliefs, even when these beliefs inspire the worst of human atrocities. Harris argues that in the presence of weapons of mass destruction, we can no longer expect to survive our religious differences indefinitely. Most controversially, he maintains that “moderation” in religion poses considerable dangers of its own: as the accommodation we have made to religious faith in our society now blinds us to the role that faith plays in perpetuating human conflict. While warning against the encroachment of organized religion into world politics, Harris draws on insights from neuroscience, philosophy, and Eastern mysticism in an attempt to provide a truly modern foundation for our ethics and our search for spiritual experience.

[GRLMGC]

2. Any religious fundamentalism is harmful

I personally don't like organized religions but I think the problem lies mostly with fundamentalists of ANY group. They exist everywhere and are ruining society.

[Earth_First]

3. "...be wary of fundamentalism from any source."

:thumbsup:

[Warpy]

4. A fundy is a fundy is a fundy

and they all seem to be equally able to commit atrocity in the name of whatever god they invoke, even if that god is the communist party.

It's the fundy mindset that we need to battle, that lightswitch mentality that sees only two alternatives and is capable of justifying unattainable ends by the most vicious means dreamed up by the human imagination.

I know too many educated and reasonable people who are Muslim, Christian, Hindu, Shinto, and of a half dozen native faiths to think religion itself is the problem. Some people are born limited. We need to recognize these limitations and keep these people the hell away from anything that could hurt the rest of us, like public office.

I don't see any point in punishing people for being born limited. However, keeping them away from things that are a danger to themselves and others should be the point.

[seabeyond]

5. no islam is not the enemy, but why do you state anti islam

in another thread i said what mohummod said. i wasnt being anti anything. i am christian. i am not fundamentalist, but i am not opposed as a christian to point out interpretation of the bible in non christian manner. i would resent someone saying i am being anti christian if i were to say fundamentalist interprets old testament in a manner that promotes hate

just as i resent someone saying i am being anti islamic because there are places in what mohummod commands that allow the fundamentalist islams to interpret his words in violence

because one says something out loud, doesnt mean it is anti anything

[hollowdweller]

19. Islam seems to be going backward instead of forward in it's thinking

Where most other religions are moving somewhat forward or staying the same. The church I went to as a kid didn't believe in boys and girls swimming together and now they have no problem with it.

If you read the old Testament it is just as repressive and full of harsh punishment as Islam, but you don't have extremely large numbers of Jews and Christians stoning women or criminals for instance, or making the women set in the back of the church, or any of the other mainly cultural things. But you DO see that in Islam a lot, even when it moves to more western countries.

When Khomeni issued the death sentence on Salmon Rushdie the local news interviewed a lot of people at our local mosque and they all said they thought it was justified. I didn't hear a lot of Christians calling for a death sentence for Larry Flynt when he ran that parody of Falwell.

[distantearlywarning]

6. Agree wholeheartedly. n/t

[sam sarrha]

7. i have lived in an islamic republic.. republic is used losely..

i dont really like the idea of people whose thought process are at best 8th century.. and controlled by the local Imam... having 51% of the vote... as much of the European Community will be facing in the next 50 years, they are figureing out that the Moslems are NOT going to assimulate before then, as they nievely anticipated in the begining.. of course that is only my own personal limited experience..

The Moors were wonderful loving and tollerent people, but the local Arabs stold their children and sold them in the 'Open Slave Markets' on the street in Dakar.. and still do, even today. even as *u$h stated an end to slavery in Senagal when he traveled thru there...

as for the extremists in islam interperting

where are the Moderates calling for a Reformation...???

I am still open to changing my opinion when is see some movement by the moderates who are presently cowed by the threat of death.

[DrWeird]

12. Where are the christians calling for reformation?

After all, the US has just killed around 30 times as many people than were killed on 9-11.

[sam sarrha]

13. the Lancet published that we killed 100,000 civilians in Faluhja

[DrWeird]

14. I believe that was for all of Iraq.

So 33 times as many killed on 9-11, only by a racial Christian instead of a radical Muslim.

[sangh0]

15. The Christians who are speaking out are all around you

even on DU

[DrWeird]

16. But are they speaking out about Reformation?

I was being sarcastic, btw.

Anywho, I thought you weren't a Christian?

[sangh0]

18. Yes, they are speaking out for reformation

.

[Karenina]

8. Here, check it out

if you're ready and willing to shed the us vs them paradigm:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=2794058

[JaneDoughnut]

11. Isn't the US leadership...

...doing a great job of radicalizing the Muslim world and creating all new fundies in our own borders?

[hollowdweller]

20. Yeah, it's almost like they are wanting to try to fire up both sides to

bring about the apocalypse, but they may be surprised what happens to them if Jesus WOULD happen to show up.

[UpsideDownFlag]

22. unfortunately, yes. nt