(October 5, 2013 at 12:02 pm)The Germans are coming Wrote:(October 5, 2013 at 11:52 am)LastPoet Wrote: Okay TGAC, I'll give you a TL;DR version: Yes, it is true that religious moderates are fundie enablers. Just look at this forum: You see alot of atheists arguing with religionists, it should be damn normal. What would surprise me was if any of the 'moderates' gained some balls and stood p for what THEY believe.
After the 2005 suicide bomings in Amman (Jordan) which was aimed at civilians, hundreds of thousands of Jordanians took to the streets and protested against suicide bomings and islamic fundermentalism.
As a result of the massive outcry of the islamic population against suicide bombing and fundermentalist violence in Jordan, Al Quaida actualy released a video condeming the attacks in Jordan.
Today, fundermentalists in Jordan no longer conduct attacks and engage in terror tactics but formed political parties.
Moderates do stand up against fundermentalism when it starts hurting them.
Most people are buissy with their everyday lives: job, family, hobby, mistres and whatever. It is mostly only when that every day life is disrupted that the broad mayority of the moderate population take a stand. Why should they else?
Hello The Germans Are Coming.
As the first person to actually try to make a counter argument, I'll take you up as holding the negative. Unfortunately for the negative side, your failure to read the opening post has left you trying to counter an argument I didn't make.
I know religious moderates criticise the actions of religious extremists, but criticism was not the matter I brought to the table. The faith of moderates enables the actions of extremists because without coherent support from reason or evidence, collective belief is all they have to rationalise the footing from which those actions stem.
Extremists may not care that their actions have received criticism from their less zealous brethren, as the similarly fallacious but popular "No true scotsman" argument can play both ways. Moderates claim the extremists are doing it wrong, and extremists claim moderates are doing it wrong. Where they don't disagree is that there is truth in their religion, and that's where the connection I drew attention to in my opening post carries weight. Because the moderate supports the ideas at the core of the ideas of the extremist, the extremist adds their head to the head count of people who agree with them at a core level, even though they diverge on the silly details, such as how far to take their actions regarding their shared core beliefs.
It seems a shame to waste a post rebutting such a weak tea attempt at countering my opening statement, but if that's the best you've got to bring to bear on the matter, this is all I need write to maintain my position.
Please read the post you, or at least Jamie, seemed so proud not to have read, and try again.
Matt
