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More Muslim violence in Europe

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PearlWatson said:
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Sorry, would you like to point out what is so 'humorous' from the inspirations I have received from being raised as a Muslim?
 
jimmy eat jazz said:
State laws can be as oppressive/restrictive of federal laws. Regardless of what level of government enacts it, the result is pretty much the same.

I like the federalism system we have in the US. In some respects, I prefer decisions made at the federal level because in some or many cases, as in theory, these decisions represent a much greater diversity of interests

Whereas at the state level, it is theoretically much easier for majorities to oppress the minorities or pass laws that reflect their views but not broader social consensus. Most prominent example is Evangelicals attempting to legislate religious dogma, but there are many others.

I like Federalism, I think it's on balance, a good thing, though imperfect in its execution.
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I don't want a federal gun registry...like the ones hitler enacted.

He made people register their guns on the pretense of safety and then he knew where they all were so he could go confiscate them
 
dalamon said:
Sorry, would you like to point out what is so 'humorous' from the inspirations I have received from being raised as a Muslim?
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It wasn't really the Muslim part, it was the motto part, but as Stoked says you really shouldn't care.

I go with a motto of trying to be as nice to each and every sinlge person I meet, as possible. In fact, I go out of my way to try and connect with strangers, especially if they share beliefs or lifestyles different than mine.
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PearlWatson said:
It wasn't really the Muslim part, it was the motto part, but as Stoked says you really shouldn't care.
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I figured. To those that have actually had a chance to interact with me at length, it doesn't seem as far-fetched. I know where you're coming from-- I guess I can come across as an *** via the internets. But I find that I only really ever butt-heads with those who: 1) are very 'matter-of-fact' with their opinions, and refuse to consider the opinions of others; 2) Pick on other posters when they really don't deserve it. You might think the worst of me, but I don't think I have ever really been 'mean' to more than 3 posters on this entire forum.
 
Stoked said:
It is Pearlwatson. Why do you even care?
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It's funny. 85% of my posts since I've gotten back, have been responses to AKMVP and PearlWatson. I feel like I'm just trying to get 6 months worth of internet-arguing out of my system. Definitely didn't think it would play out like this
 
dalamon said:
I figured. To those that have actually had a chance to interact with me at length, it doesn't seem as far-fetched. I know where you're coming from-- I guess I can come across as an *** via the internets. But I find that I only really ever butt-heads with those who: 1) are very 'matter-of-fact' with their opinions, and refuse to consider the opinions of others; 2) Pick on other posters when they really don't deserve it. You might think the worst of me, but I don't think I have ever really been 'mean' to more than 3 posters on this entire forum.
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Yeah we all have our pet peeves. Mine happen to be fish. Peev and Peevish.
 
One Brow said:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrorism_in_Thailand -- at less than one-third the population, and much less diversity

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrorism_in_the_Philippines -- well under half the population

Myanmar, Cambodia, and Malaysia all devote significant resources to anti-terrorism activities.
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and?

Perhaps I lived in Indonesia during a particularly volatile period (9/11, Gusdur's impeachment, Bali bombing), but there are several ongoing conflicts in Indonesia (I'm sure a list of clashes in Aceh would be a hell of a lot longer than that list from southern Thailand, as would violence in the Mollucas and in East Timor before independence), and frequent terror threats/attacks (many of which don't show up on wikipedia's list FWIW, including some that happened when I lived in Indonesia, notably a couple church bombings in Jakarta in 2001). I was the target of a suspected terror plot while I lived in Surakarta (where Jemaah Islamiyah is quite active...I've ridden by some of their large meetings on bicycle), which was deemed credible enough that the US Consul General flew down from Surabaya personally and whisked me and another Canadian I was living with out of town in a bullet-proof Jeep (this was around the one year anniversary of 9/11).

It's also worth noting that a lot of the different ethnic/cultural/religious groups in Indonesia are separated by seas (this applies to the Philippines as well, although less so). Where you have large minorities in Indonesia, you often have violent conflict (transmigration in Borneo didn't work out so well, Christian-Muslim violence in the Moluccas, Aceh's fight for independence, etc., etc.). I've been on a city bus in Jakarta when an Indonesian I was traveling with was asked by a group of inebriated Christian thugs whether he was Javanese or Batak...

I'm not a fan of Islam. I'm not really a fan of Christianity either, although it does seem to have adapted to changing times a bit better (this has little to do with the religion itself, as the difference between the dogma contained in the holy books of the two faiths is paper thin as far as I can tell). There's an Islamic Center I walk by frequently which has a poster hanging outside. The opening lines are: "Islam is: Submission, Obedience...". Seriously, the first two descriptors they use are "obedience" and "submission". I have little interest in a faith that places those two attributes above all else. I have little doubt you feel the same way.
 
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dalamon said:
It's funny. 85% of my posts since I've gotten back, have been responses to AKMVP and PearlWatson. I feel like I'm just trying to get 6 months worth of internet-arguing out of my system. Definitely didn't think it would play out like this
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It is hard to shoot the breeze like before when all your usual pals are gone or busy.
 
GVC,

I'm sure the wiki list for acts of terrorism in all those countries is incomplete.

My original point was that people who think that Islam, specifically, incites terror in and of itself, as opposed to the way Islam is a part of a larger culture, needs to explain what Indonesia doesn't stand out from its nearby countries in that regard.

I don't have any use for Islam or Christianity either. I think your final paragraph greatly reflects how I feel about it.
 
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