Religious fundamenalism, wherever or whoever, is the greatest threat to world peace and progress today.
Our history is filled of examples where the religious mind-set stood against reason and humanity and caused death and destruction and terror - from the murder of the last ancient philosopher (the murder of Hypatia under the orders of the Bishop by being flayed alive with broken sea-shells) to the burning of the ancient philosophic schools to the crusades to the auto-de-fe`.
For almost the last 2 millenia, the church has been a barrier and a hindrance to progress - once the Church had taken power and burnt all their competitors, scholarship and learning became so rare that we call the period the "Dark Ages".
Every step forward made by humans has been resisted and delayed by the religious.
Our understanding of anatomy used to be woeful, and thus our ability to treat wounds and illness and disease was shockingly poor. Before we understood anatomy and disease we had the Demon Theory of Disease - the church sponsored theory that diseases were caused by hidden "demons", evil spiritual beings. Nowadays we understand anatomy and hygiene - our current Germ Theory of Disease is so much better than the previous superstitions and our ability to treat accidents and illness has leaped ahead in response.
Of course the church did everything they could to stand in the way of progress - banning autopsies and experiments etc.
Just like they did everything they could to stand in the way of progress in astronomy and cosmology - it took the church 400 YEARS to admit they were wrong about Galileo.
And even today there is STILL a resistance to evolution -
incredible!
I have met and conversed with many young people from the leading civilized nations of the world - from Australasia to Europe - I am thrilled and proud and joyful at the quality of young minds I have seen - lovely young human beings who believe and practice equality, who reject violence, who treasure indivuality but respect different views, who seek to build and grow, not to damage and exploit.
I live in a country where children get their first PC as early as 3 years of age, who are reading and meditating by 4. Children here don't even hear gunshots, and rarely see violence. At my local primary school a disabled Iraqi boy had his place in the school play - no-one laughed, everyone smiled (it brought tears to my eyes, I live in the New New World and I love it.) Muslim womean wear scarves at will, Jews, Christians, Buddhists, Wiccans practice, all people express themselves and their views freely.
Out of all the people I have met in the past couple decades only TWO were Creationists.
Yet the nation that pretends to lead the West (no-one outside the US believes this anymore) has fallen victim to superstition and bigotry. The great tragedy of our age is the fall of the US to religious fundamentalism.
I don't hate Christians or Christianity,
I hate ignorance and violence brought on by religious bigotry, where-ever they be.
The US has failed its children -
education standards have fallen terribly (maybe #20 in the world at best)
violence is rife
the media is captive
and worst of all
religious fundamentalism is dominant.
Almost 50% in US believes the old fables of the OT.
Schools are starting to sneak Creationism into textbooks - funny , if it wasn't so tragic.
And now the religious fundamentalist elements have taken over the US foreign policy, the people have fallen in behind the drums of war, and the US invades where it will based on lies, trampling on innocent lives without a care (the US does not even keep figures on Iraqi deaths, thats how little they care - the Lancet estimated 100,000 so far.)
Religious fundamentalism has caused the US leadership, and tragically even SOME US soldiers to think they are BETTER human beings than Arabs (but we are encouraged by the reports of US soldiers who reject all this, having a secret way out of Iraq to a safe haven.) US soldiers are told that if they shoot because they feel at risk, and it turns out an innocent family is killed - its ok, there will be no repercussions. The US invasion has caused about 100,000 innocent deaths (in a country they are bringing "peace") and no-one has been brought to account. This evil will hang around the neck of the US for centuries.
THAT is what I hate.
Violence and racism.
It is religious fundamentalism that is the biggest threat to world peace and progress, and tragically the US has become infected.
There is good in Islam and Buddhism and Wicca and Judaism and Christianity etc.
And there can be evil in them too - its not the religion, its the MINDSET.
The mindset that says anyone who disagrees is "hateful".
The mindset that bombs abortion clinics in the name of "life"
The mindset that calls for crusades, whether to Jerusalem or Iraq, Syria and Iran.
That is why I speak out.
50 years ago horrible things were done.
"Never again" we said, "Never. Again."
But now it IS happening again -
the evil mindset that murdered Jews and Gypsys etc.
has now been turned on Muslims, or anyone who disagrees with the US.
Most of the world can see that Bush and his Neo-cons are Hitler etc. all over again.
We hope enough of the US wakes up in time.
Before millions die.
Again.
Iasion
Our history is filled of examples where the religious mind-set stood against reason and humanity and caused death and destruction and terror - from the murder of the last ancient philosopher (the murder of Hypatia under the orders of the Bishop by being flayed alive with broken sea-shells) to the burning of the ancient philosophic schools to the crusades to the auto-de-fe`.
For almost the last 2 millenia, the church has been a barrier and a hindrance to progress - once the Church had taken power and burnt all their competitors, scholarship and learning became so rare that we call the period the "Dark Ages".
Every step forward made by humans has been resisted and delayed by the religious.
Our understanding of anatomy used to be woeful, and thus our ability to treat wounds and illness and disease was shockingly poor. Before we understood anatomy and disease we had the Demon Theory of Disease - the church sponsored theory that diseases were caused by hidden "demons", evil spiritual beings. Nowadays we understand anatomy and hygiene - our current Germ Theory of Disease is so much better than the previous superstitions and our ability to treat accidents and illness has leaped ahead in response.
Of course the church did everything they could to stand in the way of progress - banning autopsies and experiments etc.
Just like they did everything they could to stand in the way of progress in astronomy and cosmology - it took the church 400 YEARS to admit they were wrong about Galileo.
And even today there is STILL a resistance to evolution -
incredible!
I have met and conversed with many young people from the leading civilized nations of the world - from Australasia to Europe - I am thrilled and proud and joyful at the quality of young minds I have seen - lovely young human beings who believe and practice equality, who reject violence, who treasure indivuality but respect different views, who seek to build and grow, not to damage and exploit.
I live in a country where children get their first PC as early as 3 years of age, who are reading and meditating by 4. Children here don't even hear gunshots, and rarely see violence. At my local primary school a disabled Iraqi boy had his place in the school play - no-one laughed, everyone smiled (it brought tears to my eyes, I live in the New New World and I love it.) Muslim womean wear scarves at will, Jews, Christians, Buddhists, Wiccans practice, all people express themselves and their views freely.
Out of all the people I have met in the past couple decades only TWO were Creationists.
Yet the nation that pretends to lead the West (no-one outside the US believes this anymore) has fallen victim to superstition and bigotry. The great tragedy of our age is the fall of the US to religious fundamentalism.
I don't hate Christians or Christianity,
I hate ignorance and violence brought on by religious bigotry, where-ever they be.
The US has failed its children -
education standards have fallen terribly (maybe #20 in the world at best)
violence is rife
the media is captive
and worst of all
religious fundamentalism is dominant.
Almost 50% in US believes the old fables of the OT.
Schools are starting to sneak Creationism into textbooks - funny , if it wasn't so tragic.
And now the religious fundamentalist elements have taken over the US foreign policy, the people have fallen in behind the drums of war, and the US invades where it will based on lies, trampling on innocent lives without a care (the US does not even keep figures on Iraqi deaths, thats how little they care - the Lancet estimated 100,000 so far.)
Religious fundamentalism has caused the US leadership, and tragically even SOME US soldiers to think they are BETTER human beings than Arabs (but we are encouraged by the reports of US soldiers who reject all this, having a secret way out of Iraq to a safe haven.) US soldiers are told that if they shoot because they feel at risk, and it turns out an innocent family is killed - its ok, there will be no repercussions. The US invasion has caused about 100,000 innocent deaths (in a country they are bringing "peace") and no-one has been brought to account. This evil will hang around the neck of the US for centuries.
THAT is what I hate.
Violence and racism.
It is religious fundamentalism that is the biggest threat to world peace and progress, and tragically the US has become infected.
There is good in Islam and Buddhism and Wicca and Judaism and Christianity etc.
And there can be evil in them too - its not the religion, its the MINDSET.
The mindset that says anyone who disagrees is "hateful".
The mindset that bombs abortion clinics in the name of "life"
The mindset that calls for crusades, whether to Jerusalem or Iraq, Syria and Iran.
That is why I speak out.
50 years ago horrible things were done.
"Never again" we said, "Never. Again."
But now it IS happening again -
the evil mindset that murdered Jews and Gypsys etc.
has now been turned on Muslims, or anyone who disagrees with the US.
Most of the world can see that Bush and his Neo-cons are Hitler etc. all over again.
We hope enough of the US wakes up in time.
Before millions die.
Again.
Iasion