Is ISLAM really the enemy? Allow me a slightly different slant, Don.

Submitted by Michel C. Zala (United States), Jan 7, 2007 at 14:37

I do absolutely agree with all the facts you state about the Q'uran and its teachings, Don.

If you in fact take it to the letter of the book.

The Bible is another of those dangerous Books( another ancient writing which has been and still is so easily be (mis-)used to warrant genocide and world domination), if taken literally.

In 2006 (For heaven's sake) I heard a respected preacher yell from the front, that, if you do not believe in the Christian God, you will " BURN IN HELL". it is the duty of the church to "save the non-believers and make them Christians. History and present have demonstrated, how we have rammed the Bible down the throats of so many unfortunate souls who simply happened to believe in something else. The Christian fanatics ( by the way I am a Christian) have forcefed their religion to so many innocent people and hence have the same bloody hands as the Islamic fanatics who take the Q'uran literally.

Quite actually I would not want to count bodies, as far as any genocide is concerned, as the Christian (Western) World would probably be the single biggest Criminal here.....

I asked a respected Christian Theologist, what about People like Gandhi or others who live and lived their lives according to the highest moral and ethical standards? Would they burn in hell too? And he looked at me and stated with a matter of fact manner:: " absolutely, as it is so written in the Bible".

My point is : Fanatics on all sides still take century old writings and apply them without any consideration of history or development of the human species word for word to the present. Most of these writiings, due to the fact that they consolidate different writers over different periods of time even manifest contradictions. Depending on my own personal viewpoint, I can find in the Q'uran as well as the Bible paragraphs and statements supporting my individual opinion. If I am pacifist, I surely can find supporting material. If I look for revenge, no problem - AN EYE FOR AN EYE, if I look for a justification to dominate or eradicate another religion, no problem again, one must spread the gospel, and I could go on and on.

As witth all writings, even the only 200 years old US Constitution or any law book, IT IS NOT THE BOOK - IT IS HOW YOU USE IT, HOW YOU READ IT AND HOW YOU INTERPRETE IT AND TRANSLATE IT TO THE MODERN WORLD.

C O M M O N S E N S E !!!!!

Proof in point:

Did our liability laws ever really mean that you should pour hot coffee over your lap and then sue McDonalds for millions of Dollars, because they serve the coffee hot? (They filled entire websites with such stupid lawsuits - hilariouos, if it was not such a tragic sign of moral decline)

Did the founding fathers really mean with freedom of speach that we should now go out and slander people at will?

Would they really approve that with the right to bear arms I now in the Year 2007 should walk around with a submachine gun? For heaven's sake - it was the Wild West, when this document was written.

We have in the USA alone a Billion Dollar legal industry of people doing nothing but looking for the loopholes in the present law. If the present law books, containing million of million of pages can not cover all eventualities of our modern life, how could we positively assume that some writer 2000 years ago was able to do it then, let alone foresee thousands of years?

COMMON SENSE is, what was and is still missing in society.

While I haven't read the Q'uran in detail ( Please, Muslims, help me out here!!) I guarantee you all, that within the Q'uran you will find somewhere the same basic ten commandmends as in the Bible. Don't kill steal or lie etc. Basic moral and ethical values. These apply still, period. Everything else is window dressing or decoration and much is simply not applicable anymore.

I have travelled the wonderful countries of Turkey and the middle east. I worked for over a year with a muslim owned company. Never have I experienced anything else than what I experienced in the homes of the former Soviet Union or the US or any European Country. Hospitality, peace, tolerance and friendship.

85% of all Muslims are peaceful citizens with the same problems and worries as John Smith in Los Angeles or the 85% of all Christians. They all do not seek world domination or hate others, no matter what the Bible or the Q'uran says. They understand that Common Sense demands to apply basic ethics and values and most of all a healthy instinct to these so dangerous ancient texts.

Holy Moses - is it really so darn difficult to understand that common sense means - do not do to others what you do not want to experience yourself ? It is the other 15% I am so scared of. And yes, the Islamic 15% is much more dangerous, as the Q'uran is indeed much more radical and aggressive in its writing. Most of all the Q'uran is more dangerous because of what I call the key design flaw.

ISLAM is fundamentally geared towards the afterlife, whereas Christianity's dogma lays more on the present life as basis for the afterlife. The Holy War, so easily proclaimed by even minor islamic theologists with martyrs going directly to paradise if killed during it, being one hell of a dangerous element.

Especially, if one considers the current quality of life of most muslims around the world, this so easily obtained paradise must appear to them as very appealing. Radical Islamic Fundamentalists with hence utter disregard for their own self-preservation therefore become the most frightening danger of the 21 century for all other Civs by logical deduction.

If we now allow this situation to escalate into a Holy War between Christianity and ISLAM, all we do is play into the hands of fanatics on either side. The Christian Fanatics want armageddon and the new world order arising from it as much, as the Islamic Fundamentalists want exactly the same - of course with their religion coming out of it victoriously. Islamic radicals are simply willing to pro-actively move the process forward, whereas the others hope for it or just let it happen passively.

Lastly, reformation or interpretation of these ancient writings in a common sense manner must come on all sides and all religions from within. All we can do as economical and military superiors is, to support such moderate streams and movements and stand firm against the others.

As I have stated in other submissions, the modern world must defend itself against the evil forces of the middle ages by applying a two prongue approach. Strenght and decisiveness against the radicals and embrace, support, tolerance and assimilation of the moderates. Both strategies encompassing ALL means of our after all massive arsenal of tools and modern instruments. Only then do we have a chance to prevail as a multi-cultural CIV.

In conlusion I feel that this is not so much about a war between religions, but a war between modern times and the middle ages represented by radical fundamentalists on either side with Islamic Fundamentalists as its spearhead or most dangerous army.

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