The fastest growing religion in the last decade in the US is violent. Does that make America violent?
If Islam is the most violent religion, why did Hakeem's demeanor change to being much more peaceful after he rededicated himself to it? Maybe we should reconsider making blanket statements like "Religion X is the most violent". Its all a matter of interpretation.
In today's day and age Islam is probably more violent. The problem is that people tend to overlook socioeconomic factors and our foreign policy when it comes to why people act the way they do. I agree with Durvasa, blanket statements are the worst. We like to simplify problems along the lines of : "Its just cuz they're violent!" "They hate our freedomz!" and crap like that, but really, the situation is far more complex. Having said that, there is a problem with the islamic teachings in these very poor countries. Uneducated people tend to spread ignorance to more uneducated people and perpetuate the cycle.
You are a stats and facts expert. Why would you apply that to basketball, but not here? Please research the stats and facts - how are the statistics for number of people murdered in terrorist attacks in the name of the different religions around the world? Largest terrorist attacks by death toll? Thanks. P.S.: Here is some help for your research: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...iolent_events_by_death_toll#Terrorist_attacks P.P.S.: As a proper statistician, you will be able to see the intentional flaws in this widely quoted study: http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2013...ttacks-on-u-s-soil-between-1970-and-2012.html One person in the comments got it right:
You are not comparing religion - you are asking why a human being made a choice, perhaps Hakeem selectively chose the passages to follow - which is a choice by a human. Doesn't change the fact that the religion itself is inherently flawed in it's text and message of violence. DD
I don't think that is the problem, its interpreting the stats in the right context. I agree that Islam is probably the more violent religion, but lets not use that to paint a biased picture with a brush while not taking into account the paint that we are using. Its kind of like saying that we have a lonely depressed white kid going on a shooting rampage problem in the U.S. I know this has nothing to do with religion, but if we were to use "lonely white kid" as a means of identifying this certain group instead of the main identifier, such as "depressed," it really paints a different picture. In this instance I think a lot of it is socioeconomic. Does islam help bring the violence out? Absolutely, but its only part of the problem.
So individual "A" is rich and prosperous and uses Islam to help him become more peaceful, while individual "B" is in a poor desolate wasteland and uses Islam to become a militant. You can't cherry pick those points to paint your argument by saying "That was because he made that choice." How broad are you gonna get...? That's like the LOFs saying that the rockets only win when they play well and lose because McHale coaches bad. You can't neglect the effects of coaching on a win and only bring it up when it comes to a loss.
I recognize that violence is a severe problem in many Islamic societies. But is it their religious belief that is the root of the problem? If so, why is it that while some self-claimed Muslims use it to fuel their violent actions, there are many others who use it as the basis for a peaceful lifestyle? Again, I think it just comes down to interpretation. Many religions can be twisted into an ideology of hatred and violence, once authoritarian fundamentalists take hold. I guess the argument is that Islam lends itself more easily to such interpretations than other religious systems.
Q: Is Islam the most violent religion? A: No, not in the history. But they produce the most terrorist fanatics today.
It does not come down to interpetation, it comes down to selective following and ignoring certain violent passages. Same thing with Christianity, you basically have to ignore the old testement. Islam is littered with contradictions - on one hand it is about peace, on the other, killing. And if you leave it, you are subject to being killed under it's apostophy (sp?) rules. People can choose to be peaceful with or without religion, but there are some that are just inherently more easy to manipulate and Islam is possibly the worst offender. DD
The punishment for apostasy is death in Islam. Even the most liberal Muslim scholar cannot deny that is what the prophet and the Quran command. That is why I'm grateful that most Muslims are selective readers. Or else my family would have to stone me to death, no joke. They would literally have to stone me to death if they followed every verse in the Quran and every credible hadith.
Would the Middle East still produce terrorists who target the U.S if the dominant local religions were swapped ?
its considered very bad analysis to cherry pick one data point when you clearly have more available to you.
So the whole picture ? Like how many terrorists are there out of all the available Muslims and how many have these terrorists killed compared to the U.S military ?
I merely asked a question, which was relevant. Is the Islam which he believes in and practices a violent belief system? If not, do you say he's not a true Muslim, since you believe Islam to be so violent?
It means Hakeem has made a personal CHOICE to ignore the violent messaging in the Koran and focus on the positive. But there are both messages in there, and tons of violence is called for in the Koran. DD
So Hakeem chooses to ignore the violent parts and focus on the parts which promote peace, and some others do the opposite. This is why I'm not comfortable with blanket statements relating to it as a "religion of violence" (or "religion of peace", for that matter). Islam can be a violent religion or it can be a peace-promoting religion. It depends on the person.
