58 killed so far today, now THAT'S a Holy Day.

[Philosoraptor]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070130/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq;
_ylt=Aknx55pC5MyYWh3U6LViivbMWM0F;_ylu=X3oDMTA3b3JuZGZhBHNlYwM3MjE-

BAGHDAD, Iraq - Bombers struck Shiite worshippers in two cities Tuesday and gunmen ambushed a busload of pilgrims in a series of attacks that killed at least 58 people as more than 2 million Shiites jammed major shrines for ceremonies marking Ashoura, the holiest day of the Shiite calendar.

The bloodshed took place despite heightened security following a battle with messianic Shiites who authorities said planned a large assault on Ashoura ceremonies. With security so intense at the main venues, extremists chose targets in smaller cities where safety measures were less stringent.

In the deadliest attack, a suicide bomber blew himself up among a crowd of worshippers entering a Shiite mosque in Mandali near the Iranian border, killing 26 people and wounding 47, according to police. At least 12 more died and 28 were wounded when a bomb exploded in a garbage can as Shiites were performing outdoor rituals in the largely Kurdish city of Khanaqin, police said.

Ashoura ceremonies mark the 7th-century death of Imam Hussein, grandson of the Prophet Mohammad, in a battle near Karbala that cemented the Sunni-Shiite schism. Worshippers beat themselves with chains, slice their heads with knives and pound their chests in expressions of grief over the death of Imam Hussein.
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Don't you just LOVE these ancient grievances and grudges? I just really appreciate religious fanatics,
they've done so much for humanity.

[dysfunctional press]

1. history proves it- religion KILLS.

that's why i avoid it at every opportunity.

[LaBanty]

2. take their religion away

and they'll have to worry about evolving, developing, and contributing in the world. With nothing left to fight over, that's a pretty scary proposition for people happier killing each other for something as shit f!cking stupid as religion.

Yeah, just keep spreading the message of peace and tolerance, you bunch of exploding jackasses.

[Philosoraptor]

6. beat themselves with chains, slice their heads with knives, where do I join?

[Bluebear]

3. Imagine if 58 were killed in the US on Christmas day

Would people here ignore that? Or do these 58 Iraqis not count to them?

[Philosoraptor]

4. They sure have a lot of holy days, & a lot of holy hell.

[LaBanty]

5. If 58 Baptists were killed by Methodists on Christmas

It would be about the same thing: utterly stupid.

The point of the post was it's religious people killing each other because of their religious beliefs, not whether each individual had any value. One group thinks the other is religiously superior, and will kill the non-believers, or those who believe otherwise, to make their point. All the while they think their religion is so f!cking great that everyone around them should live the same way.

Remember: Iraq voted to live under Islam. When given a choice, they chose this. And now, all these f-cked up factions of Islam are killing each other to prove to other factions how "right" they are.

If this isn't a portrait in lunacy, I don't know what is.