Bill Maher and Sam Harris arguing with Ben Affleck about Islam

Which was canceled because someone said something politically incorrect.

 

I think all the American politicaltainment shows are like this: even when the guests are good and the discussion is on-topic, the discussion is eventually detoured into a punchline and whooping by a less-than-serious audience that treats it like a spectator sport. If you wanted to make a version of Real Time that actually featured real debate and discussion, it would fall to the bottom of ratings faster than you can say "Charlie Rose."

I want to see writers and public intellectuals on TV talk about current events as much as anyone. I just wish it didn't have to be produced like professional wrestling, but networks have to make a profit and it's "what the people want."

 

I think the whole debate is for the most part just another version of "they hate us because of our freedom". Obviously bs.

Now it is they hate us because of their religion. bs also.

Hey, they hate us because we occupy them and support the dictators that rip them off. Why is that so hard to understand? Christians and Muslims and Jews in American would all hate an occupying power or folks who kept us from overthrowing our dictator. It would not be due to our religious beliefs, though we might have religious leaders involved in the struggle.

 

So you're telling me that you have a Serbian friend that is also Mexican?

Only in America!

 

Wait a second...Al Qaeda is in Houston?!? Hopefully it's just to open up a shawarma place.

 

A mosque means an Al Qaeda cell according to ATW.

ATW with his obsession with Muslims has much to show us about the rise of a similar obsession with Jews by many Germans that eventually led to genocide.

 

Islamaphobes

 

Liberals struggle with the cognitive dissonance of defending the right wing ideology of Islam.

But they can't take the side of America in foreign policy, so they defend the right wing ideology.

The whole thing is hilarious.

 

I'm liberal. And Islam is a very complicated subject matter for me.

 

I mean, FWIW I was a religious Muslim who almost went/possibly was Atheist (honestly none of my friends seem to know for sure if I left or not but I did take my shahadah again in private) for several years before returning to Islam. Had a lot of questions many critics of Islam had.

 

Liberals struggle with the blanket generalizations that the right wing tends to do. They want to be critical of Islam but also don't want to propagate hatred of Muslims as individuals. Individual merit is an important concept among liberals something that many right wingers do not share. Like I said before, there is a fine line between being critical of an ideology and propagating bigotry towards individuals. The left fears crossing that line and thus will sometimes irresponsibly defend the ideology while the right does not.

BTW so I'm not confused here, What do you exactly mean by "not taking the side of America"? Last time I checked the right is not taking the side of current american foreign policy. Maybe it had something to do with an alleged closet Muslim as president.

 

No one defends their right wing ideology.

Here's what right wingers do though:

1. They claim anyone who takes a pluralistic view defends violent crazies
2. They claim anyone who criticized Israel must be anti-Semitic, including other Jews

Why can't people be appreciative and respectful of moderate Islam and critical of the radicals? Why is it always all or nothing with you people?

 

I have little respect for a "moderate" islam that does not also condemn the radicals. Until the voices of moderate islam are so loud that they are sending their people as soldiers to die to defeat the evil that is radical islam I will take their silence and perceived lack of concern as acceptance. I will take the reality of polls that say the majority of muslims would prefer sharia law as a confirmation that if given the opportunity they would take my freedom from me.

I do not hold any animosity towards individual muslims but I will not stand by and be silent about my opinion of their laws and morality as defined by the louder and scarier radicals who have a much larger impact on the world than the silent and impotent majority of moderate muslims. As far as I can tell, moderate islam is perfectly happy with the actions of the radicals and so is their religious text. I am not.

Blanket generalizations by consecutive liberal posters....

American foreign policy as defined by who?

 

Mr. Clutch's statement.

 

Liberals tend to "blame America first" when something goes wrong in the world. It must have been something the US did in the past to cause whatever is happening. See Naomi Wolf's rants.

And why is there a fine line? Liberals don't seem to have any problem criticizing other ideologies (Christianity, capitalism). But when it comes to Islam all of a sudden you need to put on kids gloves and take a billion courses in sensitivity training?

 

No one is advocating banning Islam in America or banning Muslim immigration. Not sure where you're getting that right wingers aren't respectful of moderate Islam.

 

I found a lot of answers to be more than satisfactory. I did continue doing Ramadan + going to Friday prayers (occasionally) for appearances sake and sort of cause 90% of my friends/family were Muslim too. I still sort of believed in it at times but I was mostly questioning it during that time period (again really not sure if I'd be considered as Atheist or Muslim).

There are still some stuff like Sharia Law that I don't have a full grasp on but from what I've heard is that it's not even supposed to be in effect without a Caliph and Islam creates harsh punishments as deterrents and aren't actually supposed to be commonly implemented (I.E. adultery).

 

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/10/...-to-sign-petition-telling-muslims-to-go-home/