"It is not Islam's Fault that Muslim People are backwards"....Contradiction in itself, dear Havas

Submitted by Michel C Zala (Switzerland), May 30, 2011 at 13:08

Dear Havas,

What is the difference between a Muslim and a Hindu or Christian, a Jew or a Buddhist other than religion? Do Muslims have smaller brains? Smaller penises? Are they less intelligent? Do they have less Chromosomes or a different DNA? The answers are of course self evident.

Since even you will have to admit, that there is no difference between a Muslim and any other Human Being, the logical explanation for the inferiority of muslims vs all other cultures in literally all aspects of human development (science, art, technology, military, economy, law, architecture, philosophy etc.) must be derived from their religion, which does not - as compared for instance to >>>> development, adaptation, improvement, change, which is a fundamental principle of Darwinism, the survival of the fittest.

Islam created a culture and society, where the (religious) authorities, such as the sultan could never be questioned. His and his will only counted. The entire civil structure of the Ottoman empire was hierarchical to the extreme, a pyramid with only one center and peak. The ancient Greek in their struggle against Xerxes for instance debated, discussed and thus developed excellent strategies, enabling them to beat down an enemy 100 times the size and strength. The same applied to the hotch-potch force facing the Ottomans at Lepanto. Superior strategy and technology defeated an overwhelmingly larger Ottoman fleet. Going back in history, literally all battles fought and lost against muslim forces were battles, where the muslims had the advantage of hugely superior numbers, whereas most battles won by the west still saw greater numbers of muslim armees, albeit nevertheless overcome by superior strategy, better discipline and more advanced technology - all results of discussion, dissent and debate and, derived from it, progress. Science and technology developed comparably unhampered by religious doctrine.

Islam on the other hand created a society solely centered around and focused upon Islam and its rigid authorities. Everywhere, it took hold, freedom and any manifestation of evolution, science and technology, any expression of free will were immediately stiffled. There were no elections, no debate, no dissent - the system as opposed to for instance the Roman Empire was and up to this day still is purely oppressive and totalitarian in nature. Look at Iran today. Mullahs or any religious authorities can never be questioned. Their rulings are final. Since Islam stands at the center of all those societies, governing and directing literally all other aspects of human interest and development, it consequently hampers development of any other facet of human society. Simple logical and empric derivative.

Research and development in Muslim nations, constrained by religious oversight, was therefore basically inexistent. Since religious authorities (as mentioned never questioned) oversee all areas and domains of development and societal evolution, it does not come as a surprise that muslim nations have not been able to contribute to human development proportional to their demographic size. Name one invention stemming from muslim culture in the last 500 years. Name one muslim Nobel prize winner in medicine, technology or science to refute this argument.

So, in conclusion, it seems to be self-evident, why Muslim people are in fact backwards. Their culture, penetrated and governed by an exclusive, rigid, ancient religion, does not allow for change, so they do not change. No change means no evolution. No evolution means no adaptation to changing frame conditions. No adaptation means no competitiveness vs the cultures wo do change and evolve. No competitiveness means stagnation, devolution and eventually extinction. The dinosaurs were not able to adapt to quickly changing environmental frame conditions, whereas the mammals with their quick succession of generations mutated and adapted and thus survived. The modern homo sapiens is a result of this survival of the fittest.

Just as a side note and question to you Dr. Pipes and any muslim who knows: Is evolution (from a purely biological viewpoint) being taught in islamic schools? I know that every school throughout the muslim world teaches religion and the Quran, notwidthstanding the schools in and around mosques. To what extent is science, physics, biology, chemistry etc. being taught? I wonder, how the average middle school curriculum in Iran looks like. To what extent does religion determine the content of natural science? Considering the dangerouos trend of some (few) western schools to allow science (evolution) to be influenced by religion by introducing creationism into the biology classes, I can only imagine the undue influence of Islam on science classes in Pakistan, SA, Iran or Yemen. I'd be interested to hear from someone who went to school in one of these nations.

The awakening throughout the middle east in my humble opinion is an expression of the instinctive reaction of mainstreet Arabia, where normal people feel that there is something fundamentally wrong with their societies. After many decades of oppression and one dictatorial regime after another, most are after many generations of being unfree almost conditioned to accept the status quo ante as fact of life. Only due to mass communication and multimedia, the internet and access to foreign information, many have come to understand, how fundamentally better the life of their free brethren in Europe or America is, due to our functioning democracy. These are now the people who day after day get up, only to be shot at by Syrian, Yemeni or Libyan security forces. They only want, what we take for granted by now.

That I consider a step in the right direction.. albeit, so far even those courageous people have not yet drawn the ultimate conclusion. While they want democracy, freedom and liberties, as we enjoy them, most have not yet grasped, that true democracy only blooms, where dissent, debate and an open discussion is unfeathered, which can never happen, when religion stands at the core of all aspects regarding a society, governing, controlling, monitoring and hampering any form of equality or development.

For as long, as for instance women are not equal to men, there can be no true democracy. For as long, as religion is responsible for laws governing the people, has its tentacles thus in all aspects of civil government, real democracy remains a fata morgana.

Logically derived, there is no alternative for separation of church and state as a prerequisite for true democracy. Islam belongs like the Christian Religion into the churches or mosques respectively, whereas only a secular government, representing a people of fully equal citizens, indiscriminative of age, race, color,gender , creed, tribal origins, religion, and even muslim factions can offer the foundation for true democracy, as we know it in the western world.

Look at my country, the USA, where citizens of hundreds of religions, races, nations and even political ideologies live freely, peacefully and prosperously together. All citizens have a single vote, are equal and protected by strong anti-discrimination laws. Where do you see even a hint of such a melting pot in any of the muslim nations? Most of these nations have only a handful of minorities, albeit there are still clashes on a regular bases between factions, religions and tribes. Have the Turks for instance been able to make peace with their own one minority, the Kurds? In every single muslim nation one faction suppresses another and violence is an almost daily occurrence. There isn't even religious tolerance within Islam and still you do not acknowledge that Islam itself is the problem?

There is only one single true democracy in the middle east: Israel. To quote Bibi, Israel is not, what is wrong with the middle east - Israel is, what is right. Less than 1% of the entire muslim population lives in democratic conditions. Those few muslims, about 1Mio, who can vote, speak freely, are equal to any other citizen of their nation, live all in Israel. Watch the heated debates in the Knesset, and you can see true democracy at work. Truly unique, indeed.

Many people throughout the arab world now want the same democracy. They want the freedom, the liberties, the civil rights, the ability for self-determination. The freedom to pursue their own individual happiness. But that comes at a steep price, as at some point they will have to choose, as the democracy, they so much yearn for, wil not be possible to be implemented, if Islam is not pushed back out of every aspect of daily life, or a government of the people, for the people. It is either, or, as by sheer design there is no such thing as a democratic muslim government. Sharia law and the treatment of women as directed by muslim doctrine is by its nature and design undemocratic, since per Islamic Dogma all humans are not created equal.... which happens to be the pre-amble of every democratic intent.

Since there is no such thing as reform of Islam on the horizon, and women in Saudi Arabia have, quod erat demonstrandum, to fight for the ridicoulus right to even drive cars still, the awakening in the middle east can only take true hold, if religion stays out of politics. I fear that many amongst those courageous freedom fighters from Syria, Yemen, Egypt to Libya have not fully thougt this through. They still hang around the superficial level of the issue, demanding the expressions of democracy, while neglecting the actual foundation for it - removal of Islam as a political power.

Democracy is much more than holding free elections. It is not just Freedom of Speech. It is a philosophy based upon the notion that all men are created equal. Equal rights, equal opportunities, equal treatment, equal voice. It is the reason for social evolution, progress and development. Dissent, debate, equality, questioning and discussion are all prerequisits for it.

Islam on the other hand, rigid, unreformed, unevolved, ancient, unquestionable, stands diammetrally opposite and opposed to these principles. By simple causal chain and logical derivative therefore, Democracy can not exist, where Islam dominates and determines policy, goverrning and laws. The Quran, to be taken verbatim by any devout muslim, not to be interpreted, questioned or rewritten - only to be relayed by muslim clergy - is thus by all accounts clearly undemocratic, which consequently explains the century old stagnation throughout the muslim world, which, along the great circle of this posting explains your own words in the beginning, Havas, why muslims are backwards.

I for myself see a slight distinction: wherever Islam is being practiced as religion or spiritual belief in the privacy of places of woreship or at home, but otherwise does not impact social or political life (Europe, USA for instance) - in other words, where separation of church and state is mandated and enforced, democracy is strong and everybody, even Muslims, prosper.

Where however Islam is the absolute power, the guiding force, permeating and penetrating governments and policy absoutely and unfeathered up to and not limited to laws, politics and society, (Islamism), you will find oppression, persecution, inequality and totalitarianism of the likes of the worst times of the Sovjet Union.

Regarding foreign relations you find hatred, resentments, terror, (regional) power projection, fanaticism, up to and not limited to voicing claims to ancient territory and declarations of war against infidels.(ISR, PAK, India).

Domestically you find in these nations social unrest, unemployment, economical stagnation, demographic and cultural inequalities (Kurds, Alawites, Shia, Sunni, Kopts, tribes etc. etc.) and an overall cultural devolution with its increasingly festering inferiority complex vs. the ever advancing and ever evolving western culture. The gap grows wider and wider (once the oil dependency comes to an end, the last infusion of wealth will dry up, which will make the situation even worse) and jealousy turns into hatred evermore.

It is a vicious circle with Islamism in the center as its propelling energy. Turn back from Islamism, a destructive, society engulfing mainfestation of all encompassing Islam, which will destroy you and revert as a minimum to simple Islam, a religion practiced only in the privacy of your homes and mosques, as we understand our own religion as spiritual outlet, but not as government. It is your only path to peace and prosperity.

Democracy, dear Muslims, does not come in shades. True Democracy is absolute. Democracy is not a religion or an ideology, it is a form of government, based upon total, absolute equality of all its cicitzens. It provides fairness and justice for all. This is the reason, why a theocracy like Iran will and can never meet those basic standards and never will pass the litmusd test. Where Islam governs, there can be no equality. Where there is no equality, there is no democracy. No democracy means no progress, no evolution. No evolution means, that people, dear Havas, are indeed backwards.

Therefore, brutallly logical and stringent, Islam is the reason, why muslims are backwards. Sorry, dear Havas, but the causal chain is evident and you can not argue with sheer logic.

ISLAM AND ITS MILITANT IDEOLOGY, ISLAMISM, IS THE ROOT CAUSE FOR THE MISERY OF MUSLIMS. IF NOT KEPT IN CHECK, PUSHED BACK INTO THE PLACES OF WORESHIP OUT FROM GOVERNMENT AND POLICY MAKING, IT WILL BE YOUR DEMISE.

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