I was talking of some sort of relatively underground operation that could even be likened to "Crusaders" but I suppose that might be out of place or out of time but it has the symbolic value.
(01-07-2016 03:09 PM)RaccoonFace Wrote: How to deflect the 'Christianity is just as worse as Islam' argument? I know too little about it.
The new Testament has Jesus giving you one and only one commandment. That commandment is the golden rule which is to love others as you love yourself.
No, that's not what Jesus said and you're repeating progressive lies that turn people away from Christ. Jesus was NOT a peace-loving hippy. Quite the contrary.
First of all, Jesus gave TWO commandments:
Mark 12:30-31
Quote:30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’[a]
31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”
Notice, the word is not love "others" but neighbor, which has a extremely specific connotation and is made clear during the story of the good Samaritan. The Pharisee who passes by the man bleeding out is not a neighbor. Nor is the nobleman. But the Samaritan, who was basically equivalent to a Black man during America's slave era, clothed and dressed his wounds, paid for his stay at an inn, and came back later to check up on him. "Who is the neighbor?" Jesus asks. "The Samaritan," the student answers.
Therefore, you are NOT required to love those who are not your neighbor. Now, I know you may be confused: Didn't Jesus say to love thy enemy as well? He did, but he meant it in a specific context. The enemy is still your enemy, but the wise Christian must remember those who are good and evil are often made so by circumstances ("God sends the rain on the righteous and unrighteous, the sun on the just and unjust") and can still be saved with the right medicine; however one does not cast pearls before swine to save such enemies. Kill some or many of them if necessary first and make them respect you first before trying to convert.
HENCE,
Matt 10:34
Quote:34 Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.
35 For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.
36 And a man's foes shall be they of his own household.
37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
38 And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.
39 He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.
40 He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me.
And Jesus' prophecy came to pass, as the arrival of Jesus divided Jewish families across the land, with one group calling themselves Christians and the others calling themselves Talmudic Jews. These two groups of Jews stopped talking to each other; the Christians went on to build great civilizations out of the barbarians of the world, while the Talmudic Jews went on to destroy them. And it has been this way ever since.
Thanks for the correction Samseu and I agree 100% with what you said.
There's a great article on RoK that i've cited many times regarding the proper interpretation of the golden rule from a prison pastor of all things.
A conversation between Stefan Molyneux and Bill Whittle about Donald Trump and Migrant invasion of Europe:
The first half hour they cover Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton and the presidential election in general. If you want to skip that: they start talking about Europe at around 30-35 minutes or so.
And this is the kind of leftist scourge one has to deal with. Why is this man still alive after saying this?
Whenever i listen to leftists talk or trying to make their point, i hear stupidity, naivete, a child-like innocence, lack of control over emotions and complete absence of rational thinking. With the guy in that video however, i saw none of the above characteristics of a typical leftists cuck. He struck me as a cunning, intelligent psychopath who genuinely and passionately hates his country.
Something didn't seem right. He doesn't even look German so i googled the cocksucker.
Quote:Attorney Gregor Gysi, who is of Jewish ancestry, is the head of Germany's third largest political party, The Left (Die Linke), which emerged in part from the old East German communist party, the Socialist Unity Party of Germany.
Why am i even surprised? These people have been at it for thousands of years now.
In 1328, Emperor Gebre-Meskel of Ethiopia defeated the Eastern Muslims after a 30 year war.. He made peace with the Muslims & didn't burn their mosques or force them to convert to Christianity like other kings would have done. Instead, he banished all Ethiopian Jews to a small area near Lake Tana and signed an edict which prohibited all Jews from owning land, trading or engaging in any form of local politics.
When asked why he punished the Jews instead of the Muslims he said something along the lines of (hard to translate to English)
"Does the dog who bites you deserve a harsher retribution than the owner who instructed him to do so?"
Back in Highschool history class i didn't give it any thought. But it's all starting to make sense now. It's no coincidence that they've been expelled from every nation they ever set foot in. Marcus Tulius Cicero called it first back in the first century B.C " The Jews belong to a dark and repulsive force. One knows how numerous this clique is, how they stick together and what power they exercise through their unions. They are a nation of rascals and deceivers."
(01-08-2016 01:44 PM)Anabasis to Desta Wrote: Whenever i listen to leftists talk or trying to make their point, i hear stupidity, naivete, a child-like innocence, lack of control over emotions and complete absence of rational thinking. With the guy in that video however, i saw none of the above characteristics of a typical leftists cuck. He struck me as a cunning, intelligent psychopath who genuinely and passionately hates his country.
Props to you for recognizing it by just watching this short video of his. This guy is indeed as intelligent as he is dangerous. Dangerous because he is a charming and very eloquent guy who wants to eradicate Germany for the so-called "historic guilt". He says in the video that the mayority of Germans are Nazis and that hence it's good to flood the country with Rapefugees. Just unbelievable.
Question for the native German speakers on this forum.
Are there any easily available statistics on how many deportations of refugees from Germany have happened in the past due to criminal convictions (if any)?
(01-07-2016 03:09 PM)RaccoonFace Wrote: How to deflect the 'Christianity is just as worse as Islam' argument? I know too little about it.
The new Testament has Jesus giving you one and only one commandment. That commandment is the golden rule which is to love others as you love yourself.
No, that's not what Jesus said and you're repeating progressive lies that turn people away from Christ. Jesus was NOT a peace-loving hippy. Quite the contrary.
First of all, Jesus gave TWO commandments:
Mark 12:30-31
Quote:30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’[a]
31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”
Notice, the word is not love "others" but neighbor, which has a extremely specific connotation and is made clear during the story of the good Samaritan. The Pharisee who passes by the man bleeding out is not a neighbor. Nor is the nobleman. But the Samaritan, who was basically equivalent to a Black man during America's slave era, clothed and dressed his wounds, paid for his stay at an inn, and came back later to check up on him. "Who is the neighbor?" Jesus asks. "The Samaritan," the student answers.
Therefore, you are NOT required to love those who are not your neighbor. Now, I know you may be confused: Didn't Jesus say to love thy enemy as well? He did, but he meant it in a specific context. The enemy is still your enemy, but the wise Christian must remember those who are good and evil are often made so by circumstances ("God sends the rain on the righteous and unrighteous, the sun on the just and unjust") and can still be saved with the right medicine; however one does not cast pearls before swine to save such enemies. Kill some or many of them if necessary first and make them respect you first before trying to convert.
HENCE,
Matt 10:34
Quote:34 Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword.
35 For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.
36 And a man's foes shall be they of his own household.
37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
38 And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.
39 He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.
40 He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me.
And Jesus' prophecy came to pass, as the arrival of Jesus divided Jewish families across the land, with one group calling themselves Christians and the others calling themselves Talmudic Jews. These two groups of Jews stopped talking to each other; the Christians went on to build great civilizations out of the barbarians of the world, while the Talmudic Jews went on to destroy them. And it has been this way ever since.
Question for the native German speakers on this forum.
Are there any easily available statistics on how many deportations of refugees from Germany have happened in the past due to criminal convictions (if any)?
I'm on my phone so i can't cunduct a proper research but according to this newspaper article (http://m.welt.de/politik/deutschland/art...recht.html) it is hard to send an asylum seeker back, as long as the court hasn't decided whenever his application gets approved or not. Only when the court suspects that he could be a great danger for the society, he could get deported. sexual harassment wouldn't be grave enough, but eventually rape would cause a deportation. Another problem is that even when someone gets deported there are many (mostly African) states, who are refusing to take them back!
Till October 2015 10.000 people got deported after a negative asylum application, the majority though were from balcan states (Bosnia, ...) and many left voluntarily.
Quote:But other lawyers are more cautious about playing loosely with the right to asylum, which is enshrined in the German constitution as well as the Geneva Convention. Oda Jentsch, who represents asylum seekers herself, says the Residence Act can't just be used to deport someone that easily. "It's not just about whether they've been sentenced to one year or three years," she told DW. "It's about whether they represent a danger to the public, and it's not just about whether what they did means they represent a danger, but whether they will still represent a danger in the future - and the whole point of a prison sentence is that you are trying to rehabilitate them."
I think it is a bit far-fetched to say that a pick-pocket or even a rapist represents such a consistent threat to the public that you remove their right to refugee protection," she said. "You could say that contradicts the whole spirit of the Geneva Convention.
Even my eyes popped a little bit at that.
Rapists are not serious threats to the public. Germany, YES!
And this is the kind of leftist scourge one has to deal with. Why is this man still alive after saying this?
Whenever i listen to leftists talk or trying to make their point, i hear stupidity, naivete, a child-like innocence, lack of control over emotions and complete absence of rational thinking. With the guy in that video however, i saw none of the above characteristics of a typical leftists cuck. He struck me as a cunning, intelligent psychopath who genuinely and passionately hates his country.
Something didn't seem right. He doesn't even look German so i googled the cocksucker.
Quote:Attorney Gregor Gysi, who is of Jewish ancestry, is the head of Germany's third largest political party, The Left (Die Linke), which emerged in part from the old East German communist party, the Socialist Unity Party of Germany.
Why am i even surprised? These people have been at it for thousands of years now.
In 1328, Emperor Gebre-Meskel of Ethiopia defeated the Eastern Muslims after a 30 year war.. He made peace with the Muslims & didn't burn their mosques or force them to convert to Christianity like other kings would have done. Instead, he banished all Ethiopian Jews to a small area near Lake Tana and signed an edict which prohibited all Jews from owning land, trading or engaging in any form of local politics.
When asked why he punished the Jews instead of the Muslims he said something along the lines of (hard to translate to English)
"Does the dog who bites you deserve a harsher retribution than the owner who instructed him to do so?"
Back in Highschool history class i didn't give it any thought. But it's all starting to make sense now. It's no coincidence that they've been expelled from every nation they ever set foot in. Marcus Tulius Cicero called it first back in the first century B.C " The Jews belong to a dark and repulsive force. One knows how numerous this clique is, how they stick together and what power they exercise through their unions. They are a nation of rascals and deceivers."
It's almost pathological. Eventually the plebs and their shitstorm mentality will discover the same thing and what do you think happens then?
Their mortal sin is greed, not knowing when to call it quits.
Quote:But other lawyers are more cautious about playing loosely with the right to asylum, which is enshrined in the German constitution as well as the Geneva Convention. Oda Jentsch, who represents asylum seekers herself, says the Residence Act can't just be used to deport someone that easily. "It's not just about whether they've been sentenced to one year or three years," she told DW. "It's about whether they represent a danger to the public, and it's not just about whether what they did means they represent a danger, but whether they will still represent a danger in the future - and the whole point of a prison sentence is that you are trying to rehabilitate them."
I think it is a bit far-fetched to say that a pick-pocket or even a rapist represents such a consistent threat to the public that you remove their right to refugee protection," she said. "You could say that contradicts the whole spirit of the Geneva Convention.
Even my eyes popped a little bit at that.
Rapists are not serious threats to the public. Germany, YES!
Between feminists, this lawyer cunt and the mayor cunt of Koln, the biggest rape apologists are turning out to be women. This is some thermonuclear grade shit tests for German men. These women are just begging to be put in their place by alpha male. German men, grab your balls and embrace shit Lord status fully. Your country's survival depends upon it.
There was a shooting at a hotel in Egypt by two Jihadis, attacked european tourists (no dead it seems) but were killed by Egyptian security forces before they could blow themselves up.
We need an Islamic terrorism master thread, seriously.
A lot of them are going through Serbia - how many are stuck in Serbia? How many have infiltrated Belgrade? I was planning to go there damn it. And after that Budapest, what about there? A beautiful city that I so strongly hope will be preserved.
I feel horrible even asking this as relative safety and separation from the chaos in the middle-east is something I have come to take for granted. Now I have seen it for my own eyes (the train from London-Paris), it is making dents on my PCing plans and that pisses me off monumentally. Sorry to interrupt the serious religious text dissection, but seeing as PCing was one of the original purposes of this forum.
Question for the native German speakers on this forum.
Are there any easily available statistics on how many deportations of refugees from Germany have happened in the past due to criminal convictions (if any)?
Quote:Bis Ende November wurden bundesweit 18.363 Fälle gezählt. Das geht aus einer Aufstellung des Bundesinnenministeriums hervor. Im gesamten Vorjahr gab es 10.884 Abschiebungen.
Bayern schickte demnach von Anfang Januar bis Ende November mehr als drei Mal so viele abgelehnte Asylbewerber (3643) zurück in die Heimat wie 2014 (1007). Auch in Hessen verdreifachte sich die Zahl nahezu - auf 2306, nach 829 im vergangenen Jahr. In Baden-Württemberg verdoppelten sich die Abschiebezahlen im gleichen Zeitraum knapp: von 1080 auf 2140.
In anderen Bundesländern stiegen die Zahlen weniger stark an, einige verbuchten kaum eine Erhöhung. Thüringen ist das einzige Bundesland, in dem die Zahl nach unten ging: Dort wurden im laufenden Jahr 152 Abschiebungen gezählt, im vergangenen Jahr waren es 234 gewesen.
Einige Länder hatten ihre Bemühungen, abgelehnte Asylsuchende heimzuschicken, in den vergangenen Monaten deutlich verstärkt. Bis Ende April hatte die Zahl der Abschiebungen bundesweit noch bei 4508 gelegen, Ende Juni waren es dann bereits 8178 und Ende August 11.522. Nun folgte erneut ein kräftiger Anstieg.
From January 2015 to November 2015 about 18.363 get deported. Then they talk that some states triple it and others keep it still low. All in all the deportation is very low. Mostly because of political reasons. But even with the change now it will not get higher. Because some countries don't take back the people, others are still not safe to send them home. Furthermore many have no legal documents so you not even know the country. Then you have lawyers and groups that protest against deportation. But the groups will keep silent after what happen I guess. The mood is to kick all criminals out now. But lets see.
(01-08-2016 06:21 PM)John Michael Kane Wrote: Between feminists, this lawyer cunt and the mayor cunt of Koln, the biggest rape apologists are turning out to be women. This is some thermonuclear grade shit tests for German men. These women are just begging to be put in their place by alpha male. German men, grab your balls and embrace shit Lord status fully. Your country's survival depends upon it.
I talk now to this Mexican girl, so let the German bitches burn...
As promised in my previous post, I’ve brought a newspaper article from the non-Anglophone media for reasons I have also stated previously. The article in question comes Le Monde, a French newspaper; I ask any French-speakers to forgive me for any inconsistencies and bastardisations in my translation of their natives tongue. The translation is rather rigid as I did not wish to accidentally change the meaning of things, for this is a very delicate topic and I would not like to be accused of tarnishing reports. With the exception of the subordinate titles in the article, all bolded text was not part of the French-language original. Once again: I apologise for any errors although I have tried to proof-read the translation.
I have considered making a “Hitler Reacts” parody video but it does not seem appropriate given the grave nature of the crimes committed; there will be other occasions to make use of my non-existent comedic skills. Anyway, let us begin. LEMONDE – Après Cologne, Merkel durcit le ton sur les réfugiés
The events of New Year's Eve at the Köln Hauptbahnhof have led the German leaders to harden their discourse on refugees. According to information published by the Welt am Sonntag, a [German] journal, on Thursday 7 January, Cologne police, contrary to what was initially declared by its leadership, has precise information on the alleged perpetrators of sexual assaults that night. Indeed, the authorities had checked a hundred people following the acts of violence in the evening. Some of them were arrested and put under custody shortly after the incident. “Only a small minority of these people were North Africans; the majority were Syrians”, affirms the newspaper.
At a press conference on Thursday evening, Chancellor Angela Merkel promised a firm response against the perpetrators of these “repugnant criminal acts” and a reinforcement [ie strengthening] of the deportation policy for the foreign offenders. “The sensation―of women, in this case―of being left to your own devices and defenceless is personally unbearable for me”, she said. “This is to send clear signals to those who refuse to respect our laws.” She evoked the need “of speaking of the cultural foundations of co-existence”.
In an interview granted to the journal Bild on 8 January, the Vice-Chancellor, Sigmar Gabriel, also displayed a very firm attitude. “I affirm it: zero tolerance against criminality and sexual aggressions”, he insisted promising a strong response from the state. “We owe it to the Germans and to the overwhelming majority of honest refugees”.
Welt am Sonntag, classified as right-leaning in the German press, cites the anonymous testimony of policemen present at the station square at the time. Offended by the remarks of the interior minister, Thomas de Maizière, criticising them, the officials explained that the information given by the chief of the local police, Wolfgang Albers, was injust [ie inaccurate, unacceptable]. He had said that the police did not have any information on the identity of the aggressors. The mayor of Cologne, Henriette Reker, went as far as to say that “there was nothing that would allow to say they were refugees”.
Now, according to Welt am Sonntag, one hundred people were checked on the evening of the 31 Decemeber 2015, and some were taken to the police station. The result of these checks contradicts the official version: the people in question “presented documents obtained during the registration of asylum applications”, a policeman told the journal. “Above all, they wished to commit sexual aggressions [ie sexual assault], or, to say it in their logic, to have sexual fun.”[“Sexual fun” makes more sense in French but it can be understood in English.]
According to the policeman quoted by the newspaper, there weren’t, as had been said at first, 1.000 individuals, but “more than 2.000 people, nearly all of Arab origin, spread within two kilometres around the central station. No-one expected this and no-one could prevent it”. These facts were confirmed by a police report dated 2 January that Welt am Sonntag was able to procure. The head of the police union of North Rhine-Westphalia, Plickert Arnold, believes that the indication that “there was nothing that would allow to say they were refugees” was false.
“We have reports that refugees were among the suspects”, confirmed the president of the union of the Bundespolizei, Ernst G Walter, on the public broadcaster, ARD, stating that the inquiry was to identify if they were necessarily part the group of the most violent aggressors. Some of the suspects were housed in refugee reception centres in the city of Duisburg; they had been provided with documents by the Migration Office.
The police absolutely overwhelmed
On Thursday, the German press had already published extracts from another report on the intervention of the authorities at the station square, on New Year’s Eve. A story that details violence much more serious than the authorities had recognised thus far. According to the document procured by Bild and Spiegel Online, the station square was transformed into a place of violence and fear, where the police, completely overwhelmed, showed itself incapable of controlling the diverse aggressions: robberies and bottle and firework attacks against the passers-by.
The report, of which Bild published large extracts, describes a crowded square, where thousands of people, mostly men of “immigrant origin” [any other suggestions for issus de l’immigration?] under the influence, gathered and shot firecrackers and fireworks onto the crowd and the police. Already at the beginning of the police’s intervention at 21:45, passers-by reported having witnessed brawls, robberies and sexual assaults on females. “Even the appearance of the police and subsequent measures of order did not dissuade the groups from carrying out their misdeeds both within and outside the Köln Hauptbahnhof”, the document says.
At 23:30, the police opted to evacuate the spot to prevent “grave injuries or even deaths”. During the course of the operation, “numerous young women and women, shocked and in tears, ran to the police and reported having been sexually assaulted by groups of men or groups of foreigners”. The report continues saying, “The police forces could not control the events”, acknowledging the police found itself overwhelmed and “could not register complaints” at certain moments.
121 complaints
Policemen struggled to respond to the cries for help which resonated throughout the station as the attackers formed circles around the victims preventing them from intervening; only the help of passers-by could prevent a rape. “In this situation, no arrests were possible due to the authorities’ insufficient capacity”, the report reads.
“The president of the police, Wolfgang Albers, must speak on Monday before the interior ministry’s [of North Rhine-Westphalia, that is] commission. Out of respect for Parliament, we do not wish to comment”, a Cologne police spokesman told Le Monde.
The number of complaints relating to the events of that night in Cologne has risen to 121 compared to 90 at midday on Tuesday. One now knows that three-quarters of these concern sexual assaults, including two rapes. Furthermore, complaints are also multiplying in other German cities for similar offences: Stuttgart, Munich, Berlin and Hamburg, where 50 complaints were recorded for sexual assault on New Year’s Eve.
To conclude:―
(01-09-2016 03:13 AM)Hades Wrote: ^ Is that some kind of tornado made out of a cone of kebap meat?
Yes, I suppose. In truth, it comes from The Rape of Europa (2006), an American documentary on the Nazis’ dealings with art in occupied countries during the Second World War. I found this adapted version, so to speak, whilst roaming the internet.
(01-08-2016 01:44 PM)Anabasis to Desta Wrote: Back in Highschool history class i didn't give it any thought. But it's all starting to make sense now. It's no coincidence that they've been expelled from every nation they ever set foot in. Marcus Tulius Cicero called it first back in the first century B.C " The Jews belong to a dark and repulsive force. One knows how numerous this clique is, how they stick together and what power they exercise through their unions. They are a nation of rascals and deceivers."
Damn. You've figured us out. The dark and repulsive force we belong to. Specifically? Ok, I'll tell you. It's the same as Star Wars. We just don't wear the helmets in public. Only when exercising our dark union power.
Quote:A Swiss artist defied the bitter cold to stage a naked protest outside Cologne Cathedral in Germany. She was supporting women’s rights after more than 100 women were reportedly sexually assaulted on New Year’s Eve.
Milo Moire, an artist and model based in Dusseldorf, held up a sign during her demonstration, which read: “Respect us! We're not fair game, even when we are naked."
(01-07-2016 03:09 PM)RaccoonFace Wrote: How to deflect the 'Christianity is just as worse as Islam' argument? I know too little about it.
The reformation of Christianity obviously. In it's early days yes of course it was brutal, but that is why the new testament replaced the old testament and did away with all the barbaric shit.
When people talk shit about Christianity they always make reference to stuff in the old testament and to people who practiced the religion in accordance to such.
Islam has not had any sort of reformation, it remains barbaric and teaches primitive destructive virtues.
Thanks. Can you recommend me books, websites, youtube channels/videos, ... about this subject?
I know I quote Dan Simmons a lot, but he went precisely into this subject when defending against the leftie backlash to his alarm call against Islam, The Time Traveller. This was 2006, so some of the politics have moved on, but (chillingly) the themes are the same if not more relevant now than ever:
Quote:In The Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal Lector tips off young FBI agent trainee Clarisse Starling (Jodie Foster) on how to find the serial killer Buffalo Bill ("he likes to skin his humps") by whispering to Starling—"What do we covet most, Agent Starling? We covet that with which we are familiar. We covet that which we see." And indeed, the murderer had lived next door to his first victim.
In our more prosaic intellectual life, we tend to hate and attack first that with which we are most familiar.
When the topic in the April Message was the great danger of the Universal Will to Believe as focused in a fantasy-ideology, a transformative belief that will—must—use other human beings as mere props in their transformative fantasies, dozens of people responded with near-rabid attacks on Christianity.
The impulse is common…but it is also puerile and calumnious.
Sam Harris’s purpose in The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason is to spare no fantasy-ideology, to excuse no faith revealed by Holy Books or revelation…he states quite baldly that the time for allowing large groups to make extraordinary claims on the nature of reality without putting forth extraordinary evidence is over, that groups’ permission to base their ideological or religious lives on fantasy and claims to divine authority can no longer be acceptable to a planet that must return to some foundation of reason if we are to surive. Such fantasy-ideology or fantasy-religion claims must not be the last word on behavior in a time of easily obtained nuclear bombs, homegrown bioweapons, and other weapons of mass destruction. Minimal planetary and species’ hygiene demands that we outgrow our primitive addiction to transformative beliefs and magic, no matter how pleasing and empowering such Universal Will to Believe has been over the course of our species’ sad history.
But to compare 21st Century Christianity around the world to the realities of radical and militant Islam, as dozens did on our forum and elsewhere, or to compare President George W. Bush to Iran’s President Ahmadenijad—to say that "Bush is worse" because of his Christian faith—is insane.
Even while saying that the time for religious fundamentalism is over everywhere, that it is a luxury we can no longer afford, Sam Harris acknowledges that Christianity has so incorporated tolerance into its faith and practice that the religion has become almost synonymous with tolerance. Perhaps more importantly, Christianity and humanist Enlightenment have been in a long, co-evolutionary spiral for so many centuries now that in most cases in Christian and post-Christian societies and in their institutions—science, free press, the courts, education systems, political systems—the secular and the religious remain essentially separate yet supportive.
Christianity remains a "transformative belief," but the transformation—as in the case of President George W. Bush, so frequently mocked by the sophisticated—is a private and internal transformation. It tends to breed more tolerance, not less. And I’ve been informed on good authority that even the strongest transformational-belief element in Christian theology required the blood of only one martyr—and that he was crucified long ago.
In America, still a "Protestant Christian nation" in a way that brings down the scorn and contempt of so many citizens of post-Christian Europe, even the most fundamentalist or evangelical Christian lives and works in a modern, scientific, secular society with little conflict. A born-again Christian not only can be a lawyer in perfectly secular courts, take his or her entertainment from secular sources, spend his workdays and social evenings comfortably with people from other (or no) faiths, and can marry outside the faith, but also can work as a NASA scientist or help others as a social worker or vote for politicians of other (or no) faiths without fear of losing his soul.
Those who equate Christian fundamentalism with Islamic fundamentalism choose to ignore that when a tsunami hits Indonesia or an earthquake ravages Muslim Pakistan, it is Christian charities that are often the first to respond. And no one need convert or submit to proselytizing to receive such help. And unlike Hamas or Hezbollah, which also include charities among their lists of organizations, Christian churches and relief agencies do not fund or carry out terrorism. Helping others, not jihad or suicide bombing, is hardwired into all modern Christian thought.
There is no reason that most of you reading this should have read my stories and novels, nor that you should know my stand on religion, but for the latter I could quote John Updike in "The Music School" when a character says—"I am neither musical nor religious. Each moment I live I must press my fingers down without confidence of hearing a chord."
To state it more simply when it comes to religion—or the belief in supernatural in any form—I agree with Groucho Marx and Woody Allen when they say, "I wouldn’t belong to any club that would have me as a member."
As for my writing, most of you reading this wouldn’t know that in my concern about UWTB fantasy-ideologies gaining temporal power, I have almost always followed the Hannibal Lector Dictum and focused on Christianity as the possible villain in my speculative fiction scenarios, ranging from such little-known short works as "Vexed to Nightmare by a Rocking Cradle" to "Vanni Fucci is Alive and Well and Living in Hell" to longer forms of exploring concerns about an institution like the Catholic Church controlling literal resurrection—and thus all of us—in my Hyperion and Endymion novels.
But for all that caution—in my fiction and in my philosophy—I know that to equate modern Christianity to the worldwide violence arising in and around modern Islam is not only unfair but pathological. It is carrying the game of "moral equivalence" to immoral lengths of absurdity.
Finally, to equate America’s President Bush to Iran’s President Ahmadenijad—an extreme Muslim fantasy-transformative Mahdi fundamentalist who, in recent months, has denied the existence of the Holocaust, called for the destruction of Israel by nuclear fire, threatened Europe and the West with annihilation, and promised to give nuclear technology to the Islamist government of Sudan (which is currently carrying out a policy of genocide against the weakest non-Muslim citizens in its country)—is simply nuts.