av8torntn
Well-Known Member
I spent almost two years living and working with the people of Islam in some of the most sacred and important places to them. I am not sure what you think Islam is about but one of my observations is that it is not about peace or freedom. As a group they are very intolerant of others, even those in different branches within their faith. They feel justified killing those that have beliefs not in line with their own. They often justify killing solely in the name of religion (even fellow Muslims). Yes there is great wealth in some Muslim nations but even some of the most well off live in great poverty by our standards. I once visited a palace that was so large words could not do it justice. It was owned by an extremely wealthy person but no running water, sewage, or power. The owner claimed it was because his "God" wanted him to suffer. Within eyesight were people living in mud huts. I have seen the pilgrimage between Najaf and Karballa where they walk with no sandals while beating themselves on the back with a whip or canes all for self punishment. I have met a Muslim man with his eyes burnt out for looking at another mans wife. I never met someone with his hand cut off but I have met a man that had his leg cut off for committing a "crime". Yes people would disappear during the night to never be seen again for "crimes" as simple as possession of alcohol. I met one man that was hung by his wrists from the ceiling and beat for twelve hours for the "crime" of voting. We could not help him because he would be killed for the "crime" of accepting help from a non Muslim. Yes many of them feel justified to kill to prevent the freedom to do worship another God, or the freedom to not be bound by the laws of their religion. When you make a statement like you made it gives the appearance that you do not get out much. The bottom line is that Islam is many different things to many different people and for you to try and imply or say as you have in this thread that they hate us for some foreign policy when it has gone much longer and runs much deeper than that is absurd.
On the other extreme I have walked into houses with many dead Muslim men with weapons everywhere. When I asked the family members why they did not kill any of the attackers the answer would be because our Imam(sp?) had told them that killing other Muslims was wrong. My point is that you cannot take any one persons views or even one groups views and think that you can hold them up to represent a group as large as Islam. Muslims destroyed one of the worlds oldest mosques while I was there. In some respects we had more reverence for some of their holy sites than some of them did.
