Islam: A religion for Losers

http://www.freerepublic.com/ ^ | 10-21-2006 | Me

[The Right Stuff]

excellent essay and cogent argument!

[tcostell]

Well I'm expanding this idea for another essay but I see no reason I can't give a synapses here.

I think it can be shown pretty clearly with nothing more than game theory, that there is a fundamental difference between the kind of problem solving offered under Christian morality and Islamic morality.

My point is that it's not necessary to believe in one or the other to be able to show that the Christian world's morality leads to conflict resolution that benefits everyone, and that Islamic morality leads to conflict resolution which usually benefits one party at the expense of the other. Eventually, this leads to even greater differences in the opposing societies which are structured on that concept.

And getting help from a "higher power to find the strength to accept my faults" is one thing but getting help from a "higher power to slaughter my enemies and punish the people that made my life suck" is another. One invloves taking personal responsiblity, which in my opinion is the hallamrk of chrstianity, and the other involves holding other people acocuntable for whatever is wrong with your life.

Calling two philosophies "religions" doesn't neccesarily make them into the same thing. And personally I don't think Ted Turner is a particularly good example of a critical thinker.

[A. Pole]

In the history of man, no society has so successfully provided each individual with opportunity like the United States.

The ultimate measure of success is the collective survival not the opportunity for the individuals.

If you have more children you win, if you do not have enough children you follow the path of dinosaurs, no matter how big and ferocious you are or how much money you made.

[Pharmboy]

Needn't go that far...they were his competition. He wanted to supplant Judaism and Christianity. He could not coexist with the infidel: convert or die.

[Leftism is Mentally Deranged]

"it's a religion which rewards the loser for the very things which make them a loser"
That explains why the left loves it so much.
"encourages its faithful to not take responsibility for the circumstances of their life"
Another beloved belief of the left.

Notice which certain segments of society are attracted by this belief system -
those who have been unwilling to take responsibility for their underachievement
and who make a good living out of blaming their problems on the white Christian majority.

This is an excellent article.

[seowulf]

Very good.

This explains the similarities between Socialists and Muslims. Both are organizations of losers and use similar methods to bring down the successful.

The losers of Islam are just petulent children who would burn down the house just because Mom won't give them ice cream. Nihilists.

[ljswisc]

Excellent article.

[HitmanLV]

Does anything in particular about 'the meek shall inherit the earth' strike you as an aspect of a religion that appeals to winners?

[fish hawk]

I'd like to believe you, could you show some links where this can be proved?

[USCG SimTech]

And for centuries these losers have been breeding with any other losers they could enslave. Evolution thrown into reverse.

Insecure, immature, lazy men that are afraid of the strength, stability and forward thinking that women add to a society, the give-and-take needed in a loving relationship, would rather use this demi-god pseudo-religeon as the basis to have women be their slaves and property instead.

Guilt tripping the females that they're going to hell, if they don't be "cattle". Force keeping them uneducated so they won't find out this truth. Kill any that start to "stir up trouble."

[tcostell]

Sure. Please have a look at post #24.

My essay isn't about whether you like Christianity or not. And I think it can be demonstrated using objective terms that anyone would agree to regardless of faith, that the Christian world is VASTLY more successful by virtually any measure than the Islamic world. A man on the moon and a bone in the nose are not the same thing.

So a better question I think, is why would one assume that simply being meek makes one a loser?

In the western (read Christian) world, faith and success are not mutually exclusive by any means.

[HitmanLV]

My comment had nothing to do with liking Christianity or not. I am a Christian and I think it's clear that Christianity is a great religion.

To answer your question, this line suggests that those who don;t persue earthly success will be rewarded with heavenly, spiritual success.

The people who chide as losers in Islam have rejected (unwisely) earthly success. In that respect, they are the meek ones Jesus is talking about, but in a host of other respects they fall short of the Christian ideal.

While I agree with you that being successful and a Christian are not mutually exclusive, I have to point out that Jesus explicitly thinks that the losers in earthly, material sphere will find great reward in the afterlife.

The Islamists think that also, for different reasons, and approach it in different ways.

I don't see any evidence here that Jesus was talking about materially successful people when he said the 'meek' shall inherit the earth.

[HitmanLV]

And by the way, post #24 has nothing to do with this, no matter how much you might like to believe it does.

[HitmanLV]

"It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God" (Matthew 19:24)

Now that's a ringing endorsement for material overachieving if I ever read one! ;-)

[tcostell]

Respectfully, the only one who said anything about material success was you. It's true that many people think that material success is the only success, and in the Christian world, those people are free to operate on that basis.

The definition of success that I was thinking about was a little different. I was talking about a more macro view. In the Christian world, every effort is made to encourage everyone involved in a conflict to find a way to a solution without specifically damaging another party. The win/win solution is viewed as the best. Not so under Islam.

And cherry picking the bible to lend credence to your personal definition of success doesn't negate my point.

[tcostell]

Excuse me... I meant post number #22.

[HitmanLV]

What does 'meek' mean, then, in the context of the Beatitudes?

What does Jesus mean when he is talking about the odds of a rich man entering the kingdom of God?

My point is that a lot of religions have a lot to offer losers - people with 'less,' as opposed to people with 'more.'

Your self serving macro view notwithstanding, you don't seem too willing to accept that.

[HitmanLV]

No problem.

[WashingtonSource]

Data on China is hard to come by, but for starters, there was an article in The Economist earlier this year. Here is a link, but you need a subscription to see the whole article. But it's a start: http://www.economist.com/displaystory.cfm?story_id=3896585

Here are some excerpts from The Economist story about this growth: http://www.killrighty.net/2005/05/01/christianity-in-china/

Here's a link to a 2004 article from Christianity Today, which reports estimates of the number of Christians in China ranges from 30 million to 100 million:
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2004/februaryweb-only/2-16-31.0.html

This story also reports how shocked the Communists are at the rapid growth of Christianity.

I'll try to find more about the other items I mentioned and send them shortly.

[WashingtonSource]

Here's a link to an article that estimates that 20,000 Muslims convert to Christianity every year in America. This, in spite of all the death threats they get.

http://amightywind.com/islam/muslimconverts.htm

Meanwhile the number of Christian converts to Islam is estimated 50,000 a year. Hardly an earth-shattering number.