Confronting Islamic terrorism in the long term (moral, America, recall)

[trishtrish10]

i highly respect Islam. we are brothers. we worship the same God. the difference is our belief in the Trinity not our mutual God. the jews also deserve high respect for their God is ours also. they are hopeless because they don't think their messiah has come yet according to the religious media. if u think about, salvation is our only hope and everyone except a very few have love and good intentions in their heart. Love is what unites all people. when u meet a stranger, one usually doesn't discriminate his religion, but judges his character and how he treats or loves u and others. according to my beliefs it is our duty to be patriotic, loving, and educate ourselves and others, the best way we know how, in fact it is a responsibility and according to Mrs. Saddock a former episcopalian, it makes the stakes much higher as well as the rewards.

[civilcynic]

Originally Posted by trishtrish10

democracies and republics have their advantages and disadvantages, as do all forms of government. each form of government(dictatorships, crowns, communist,etc.) has good aspects to them and fallacies. the only true form of governing that's perfect is the infallibility of the Popedom. but we need fair laws that govern commerce which is connected to the church, when it becomes necessary for harm prevention, and i'm not talking about when your pride is hurt. someone has to be elected to be able to lay the hammer down when it comes to morals, and that representative (God's) is the pope.

How can you suggest that you have a high respect for Islam and other religions when you believe that the pope is an infallable representative of God and should govern world "laying the hammer down" based on his Catholic Religious beliefs......Morality can be relative to a person's culture, religious beliefs, circumstances, etc;

[Mr Spinkles]

Hmmm, good point civilcynic, though I would commend trishtrish10's religious tolerance.

Terrorism is not limited to the Islamic religion...There are fanatics in all religions who cause mayhem, destruction and death in the name of God. Its happened throughout history.

Yes, I agree. The article specifically focuses on Islamic terrorism though, and what strategies to pursue to eradicate it in the long term.

We have already seen positive changes in the foreign policies of countries like Egypt and Libya as a direct result of American military presence in Iraq, and we may begin to see other MidEast countries pursue democratic reform in the near future, especially if Iraq prospers as a democracy (and it probably will). Without falling into a debate about whether or not the Iraq war was justified in the first place, would you agree that a free Iraq that has good relations with America could be a catalyst for change in the Middle East? Keep in mind that most Islamic terrorism comes from theocratic, totalitarian governments where there is no free press and much anti-American, anti-West indoctrination (and yet despite this most Arabs strongly favor democratic reform).

[trishtrish10]

the reason i suggest the pope to be the sole ruler of the world, is because he already is, most people just don't recognize him as such. i would make all governments agree with the morality of the roman catholic church for the good of all. i'm just daydreaming. all peoples need to settle their differences, allow these differences and unite. God allows us to sin and is most generally forgiving, which is both his greatest strength and his greatest weakness. he only punishes when necessary. i punish myself, sometimes, and go into depression.

[civilcynic]

Originally Posted by trishtrish10

the reason i suggest the pope to be the sole ruler of the world, is because he already is, most people just don't recognize him as such. i would make all governments agree with the morality of the roman catholic church for the good of all. i'm just daydreaming. all peoples need to settle their differences, allow these differences and unite. God allows us to sin and is most generally forgiving, which is both his greatest strength and his greatest weakness. he only punishes when necessary. i punish myself, sometimes, and go into depression.

It seems what your post suggests when you say that "all people need to settle their differences...and unite", is that all people in the world should give up any belief and/point of view that does not fit into your idea of Catholicism.
What you are suggesting is that everyone give up their way of living and follow yours. Why? You may have a strong Faith but that does not mean that you have all the answers nor do you have any right to inmpose your beleifs on anyone else

[Mr Spinkles]

If anyone wants to discuss the article and how it relates to a long term strategy that includes the Iraq War, I'd be happy to oblige.

[trishtrish10]

i pray all of God's people will unite peacefully

[Jaiket]

The introduction of a competitive market would probably aid the process towards peace in the region. I'm not a fan of market fundamentalism, infact I believe it is counter democratic, but a regulated system which shares the benefits would have many advantages. Democracy I believe to be essential for lasting peace and prosperity, and fairer trade with western powers would also ease tension I feel. I'm not an expert on Islamic terrorism but I know that anger, and feeling powerless has to be aimed somewhere, and who better than the powerful?

[Mr Spinkles]

Good points, truthseekingsoul, all. I think it's also important to note that many governments in the Middle East deflect the blame for the division between rich and poor in their countries onto the U.S. The democratic countries, like the United Arab Emirates, are fabulously wealthy....meanwhile, most Iranians under totalitarian rule are relatively poor. Must be America's fault!

The easiest way to come to power is to address a problem, identify some ominous enemy (besides us, of course!) as responsible for that problem, and tell your followers they need you to protect them from that enemy.

[Phoenix]

i highly respect Islam. we are brothers. we worship the same God.

Aren't we fighting radical fundamentalist Islam terrorists in this war? By saying your views sounded like those of Islamic fundamentalists... connect the dots.

according to my beliefs it is our duty to be patriotic, loving, and educate ourselves and others, the best way we know how

BY ALWAYS KNOCKING ON OUR DOORS TRYING TO SELL US BIBLES AND CHURCH MEMBERSHIPS. AHHH!!

Hmmm, good point civilcynic, though I would commend trishtrish10's religious tolerance.

You mean her highly respecting any religion with the same God as hers and trying to change world governments to Divine Dictatorships? Hmm..

i would make all governments agree with the morality of the roman catholic church for the good of all. i'm just daydreaming.

That sounds like Hitler. "Kill the Jews for the good of all." And yeah, you are daydreaming.

i pray all of God's people will unite peacefully

Yeah, and to hell with everyone else, right! o_o

Good points, truthseekingsoul, all. I think it's also important to note that many governments in the Middle East deflect the blame for the division between rich and poor in their countries onto the U.S. The democratic countries, like the United Arab Emirates, are fabulously wealthy....meanwhile, most Iranians under totalitarian rule are relatively poor. Must be America's fault!

Well, in Capitalism, there will always be the extremely poor and the extremely wealthy. What are we forcing onto Iraq?

I hope a radical Communist country decides to take Bush out of power and establish a Communistic government, which they think will be better for the people than Capitalism. Which is totally true. Then we might start to understand how arrogant we are.

The easiest way to come to power is to address a problem, identify some ominous enemy (besides us, of course!) as responsible for that problem, and tell your followers they need you to protect them from that enemy.

You mean including us, of course. Right?