Sunday, March 27, 2011

Tolerating Islam as a Religion or as a Political System

My question of the day is, "How can one be true to the concept of freedom of religion without admitting the risks implied by the political nature of Islam?" Islam as a religion is not an issue for most Americans; however, Islam carries within it a political system which is an anathema. The most troubling aspect of Islam for Americans is the apparent structural connection between these two facets of the Islam belief system.

Whether political power is granted to Caliphs or to Imams by the Quran is a source of internal debate within Islam - but either way we have a conflict with the principle of separation of church and state. (I acknowledge that this conflation of Church and State is not limited to Muslims. We already have ongoing battles pitting religious beliefs against Liberty most apparently within the Republican Party. However, that is another issue.)

On the surface, it appears to me that one has to choose between tolerance for the religion with the associated risks of appeasement for the politics, or intolerance for both. Since, as a belief system, Islam is intolerant of our traditional belief systems, both religious and political, it seems the choice has already been made for us, since tolerating intolerance in the name of tolerance is a fool's (or a saint's) bargain.

David

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

It's the Constitution, Stupid!

I believe the Libyan affair is truly a fight for Democracy; one which demands the immediate and passionate involvement of the People of the United States. Obama’s acts of war under the pretense of a United Nations Resolution constitute a direct assault on our United States Constitution and must be countered.

Our Founding Fathers did not establish a kingdom, where one man could carry out war in the name of the American people or, worse yet, under the banner of a foreign agent. I call upon all freedom loving Americans to demand action from their Representatives in Congress, and I offer the following letter as a suggested communication:


Dear Congressman Reichert,

I call upon you today to live up to your oath of office and to defend the United States Constitution from those forces which seek to undermine and usurp its authority in our affairs of state.

President Obama has initiated acts of war against a foreign power without any declaration of war from Congress, under the guise of a United Nations Resolution approving such actions. This is a direct violation of Article I of our Constitution.

I call upon you to sponsor or to co-sponsor a Resolution establishing Articles of Impeachment against the President in this affair. Should you be unwilling to honor your oath to "support and defend the Constitution of the United States," I call upon you to resign your office.

Sincerely,

David Rogers
Bellevue, WA

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Regarding the Messages of Intolerance in the Koran

RE: Bill Maher Debates Islam with Democratic Muslim Congressman

Bill Maher is not exactly an advocate for religion, but you couldn't say he is biased toward one or another. Between his comments and those of his guest, the point is made that most Muslims do not espouse the messages of intolerance present in the Koran - yet, those message are clearly there in spite of the denials.

That presence of mixed messages is often defended by pointing to mixed messages in the Christian bible. The problem with the Koran's mixed messages is that the hateful and intolerant material comes after and supersedes the more wholesome spiritual material found earlier. The exact opposite is true in the Christian bible. The difference is significant!

The seeds of hatred and intolerance of others (infidels) are there and are cultivated by the passages in the Koran having precedence. A key question is whether one can then believe, without engaging in delusional thinking, that those seeds will fail to produce their bitter fruit in the long run.

Saturday, March 12, 2011

The Defense of Marriage Act is Worth Wasting Time and Energy Over?

Wednesday, House Republican leadership lead by John Boehner voted to defend DOMA (the so-called Defense of Marriage Act.)

Let me get this straight, Boehner: You can't rustle up the will and resolve to pony up much more than a single week's federal spending - in budget increase reductions (much less actual budget CUTS.) Yet, you have the unmitigated gall to divert precious time and energy (THE PEOPLE'S TIME AND ENERGY!) to this sort of misanthropic micromanagement of people's lives in America?!?

You are a disgrace to your office, and to the oath you took upon entering your office!
You are a big-government charlatan, and you deserve to be swept aside with the rest of the big-government charlatans. You obviously didn’t hear the message in 2010, let’s hope you hear it loud and clear in 2012.