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I'm really just caught between this...Tom Toles obviously took this cartoon way too far by dishonoring crippled troops. I don't support this war in any way, but isn't that a bit arrogant? There are so many ways to get your opinion out and your voice heard; I just don't see why some people feel the need to do it at the emotional expense of others. I'm really interested in hearing other people's thoughts about this because it really is a balanced conflict.

This is my opinion. I hope you will respect it. This is eastern view on western people. In western countries, people are too free and too liberal that they started saying and doing whatever is in their mind, and sometimes they go beyond the limit. And that causes lots and lots of problems.

And the problem with some countries is that they are too conservative (especially in muslim countries) that people cannot voice their opinion properly again. These two extreme are both bad for societies and human race. I wonder when will a very balance world and people will emerge in this world.

And the cartoon in question stands for the first argument I've put. This is my frank opinion. This cartoon is somewhat similar to Prophet Mohammed's cartoon that is causing lots of protest in the Muslim world.

I do not like the muslim religion because, as someone said in a blog, it isn't reformed. There was a time when christians where burned just for having a different point of view. But that time has passed. The influence of the church (and religion) in a modern society is very low compared to that time when the church (and religion) ruled everything. Times have changed... western civilizations fought many wars, 2 of them world wars, built empires that, in time, collapsed. But after every such experience the western civilizations learned and prospered, building what we have today... freedom! We can talk about whatever we want without beeing afraid of getting punished... Muslim religion, in my opinion, hasn't changed much since the crusades. I won't put a gun in the hand of someone who is driven by blind faith in something. Faith blinds reason, the only thing that makes the difference between animals and humans...
Religion is a very effective political weapon. It has been proven over and over again in history.... Religion is good, don't get me wrong...it gives people hope and a reason to live, but there is more to life then waiting for a presumed God. That is the main difference... Western civilizations have let go that strong connection with God, built empires based on material stuff, money and blood, while the Eastern civilizations refuse to let go, refuse to see the posibility that we may be alone, and that there is no one watching us, refuse to connect to the real world. We make our own destiny... As I see it, for something (a human, an animal or a human civilization) to survive it must adapt. Times have changed. We have conquered space, we are a lot smarter then the cave men waiting for God to give him food. We know better...
And that is the reason the newspaper should have published that images... we claim to be better, to have more freedom. But if we have a better civilization shouldn't we have more respect for the ones that don't share our point of view. Isn't the right to belive into whatever you want written in the human rights. Just because they have a 14 century point of view doesn't mean they are they are any less human then us.
So, in my opinion, even if I do not agree with the muslim blind faith in God, I strongly disagree with the cartoons. The newspaper should have stoped the photos from beeing printed. We must have respect for the people that are different. Isn't that like the most important thing in our beloved democracy - equality. So are we really that much better if we can't see the big picture?

Western nations aren't, in fact, too liberal. The opposings sides between the conservatives and liberals are often divided equally among different nations. One of the things we value here is the freedom to say whatever you want as long as it isn't threatening someone else. This brings about problems among people, but it isn't so extreme to the point where all hell breaks loose. It is balanced on both sides of the matter.

The political cartoon you are talking about is a much different view on the matter. The person who has drawn this cartoon has targetted and stereotyped a group of people. Whereas Tom Tole's cartoon was trying to make a point about our stance in Iraq, Mohammed's cartoon was an example of deliberate misdemeanor.



Is a non-reformed religion that bad? Pagan religions, for the most part, aren't reformed, but yet Wicca is the third fastest growing religion in the United States. For thousands of years Pagans where the dominate faith, but it wasn't until Christianity came along, as I recall, until war and problems broke out.



What we have today didn't come from Christianity. It came through trial and error...starting with the Greeks, who founded democracy. The World Wars were just that, World Wars - that's including the Eastern Civilizations. Last I checked, China hasn't ever collapsed.



Western Civilizations really haven't let go of "that strong connection with God". The dominate religion in society today is still Catholicism which, believe it or not, does still weave its way into politics. "One Nation Under God" is still in the United State's Pledge Of Allegiance...and your belief in the non-God does not void the roots in the Western political system. You've mentioned cavemen, but I don't think it's fair to compare those of Eastern Civilization with a pre-evolved humanoid.

Overall, what you did have to say had meaning, and it was a well-supported opinion. However, I don't see it fair to call a faith you don't like because it isn't "reformed" blind. There are many things that Eastern Civilization has accomplished that we could never hope to - and vice versa.

Well first of all I haven't compared them to the cavemen. I only said that we should not expect the divine intervention sometime soon, because wars still happen, earthquakes still happen... people still die. Religion is hope and hope is good. It helps us in the worst days. But to make religion the base of your life it is just madness. We have to live in the real world and deal with the real world problems like pointless wars, hunger, etc.
And yes there are aspects in these un-reformed religions that are good. Some should be learned... but once again, building your existance on one belive that may or may not be true is not good. Because this kind of passion for religion can build monsters... why would someone blow himself up in the name of religion... that,. in my opinion, is the power of faith without knowlege
I do not agree with you on the fact that western civilizations have let go of that strong connection with God. Simply because I'm asking "What if there is no God?" it is proof that western civilizations have have let go of that strong connection with God. I haven't seen in my life a muslim wondering if his God really exists. Isn't that blind faith. Faith without any kind of proof???
Even the fact that the West is based on money supports that. Money means something you can see and touch, it is the opposite of religion. Money takes people in the opposite direction of where religion takes us. Money makes us selfish, makes us forget who we were and where we came from. And maybe that is why sometimes a little religion is better. But that is, in my opinion, the price of progress...

This post has been edited by adriantc: Feb 7 2006, 08:28 PM

I disagree with you - I think making religion, or some belief of a higher power, is beneficial...and that really contradicts itself. Hope is good, and in order for some people to make it through the day, they need to believe that their higher power is guiding them. Religion drives people to make it through life, the strive for success, and to have good morals. Naturally, no matter what, these morals make their way into government as well. Eastern culture has a different set of morals and beliefs. For instance, they value life and time much, MUCH more than Western culture does. Therefore, their government and the morals and beliefs of the people in charge will directly reflect the politics in that nation.



There are extremists out there that do tend to blur the border between religion and government, but they don't kill themselves for 'God'. They kill themselves because they want to hurt the people that they're against, and they don't care if they die while doing it. Faith wouldn't be faith if it were proved by fact.



Could you please elaborate on this? It seems to contradict a whole lot of things you've said.

It's pretty simple what I am saying. Western civilizations don't have God as their main way of life. We have money, we have economy. I said money is the exact oposite of faith. And money is the base of the capitalistic world we live in. And living only for the money, for what YOU can do with it is really bad.
The fact that the Eastern world is so agains the cartoons only shows the gap between the civilizations. If a newspaper would have published some pictures with Moses (for example) nobody would have really cared (maybe a small amount of people...only the very religios ones). But in the east you can the scale of the problem... people die for a cartoon... that is not good at all. I'm not saying that the cartoons are nothing, but it sure (for any point of view) it's something worth do die for. And that it what passion in religion leads to... not only to terrorists...

Are you speaking fro