The 54 year old British teacher Gillian Gibbons who was teaching in Sudan was accused, arrested, convicted, and jailed because she permitted her students to name a teddy bear
Muhammad. Two Muslim members of the British parliament eventually flew to the Sudan and negotiated at length with the president of this backward little banana republic. Mrs. Gibbons had spent eight days in custody before he pardoned her.I have taken the quotation below from the BBC website. It is intentionally taken slightly out of context, but the words clearly indicate what the majority of reasonable people around the world are thinking:
"Each time we have” events like this “then we have repercussions and people begin to feel that Islam has no place in modern society...”
After this event it should not be necessary for me to say any more about the absurdity of this particular religion, but apparently it is required. If one examines any of the most popular organized religions around the world one finds similar things which are terribly at odds with reality. Some organized religions are certainly worse than others, as demonstrated by this case.
It seems to me that the survival of organized religions requires that faith and irrationality win out over reason, facts, and truth. This intentional suspension of disbelief in the name of faith can result in very negative consequences.
When one talks about the founders of our country, or our common ideals, one tends to think of rather ignorant and stupid members of the right-wing. But it is not necessarily so. This story clearly illustrates the importance of separation of church and state. The COMPLETE separation. This important concept seems obvious to someone who grew up in America, but in most of the other countries around the world religion is intertwined with the workings of the government.
The dilemma is that these organized religions have been used pretty effectively to pass along to children some vital concepts. Treating people fairly, being honest, humility, the difference between right and wrong, etc. Think of the ten commandments in the bible.
When both parents work (if indeed there are 2 parents present as is becoming increasingly rare), and the children are raised largely by baby sitters, television, and the internet, without the benefit of any religious education, the kids tend to grow up amorally. No absurd religion, but also no philosophical belief system. Other than the philosophy of me, me, and me. Hedonism, self-gratification, and greed.
In many cases these people who grow up without the benefit of any religious belief later turn into discontented, dishonest, and immoral adults.
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An American colleague of mine who I worked with for many years in Europe, and who has since retired and is living in Italy responds:
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Dear Paul,
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Pretty good blog. That fat bitch needs to be in a diet clinic with a ton of Mohamed's.
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The Jews gave the world the ten commandments. Thats what Moses carried down from the mountain then broke up the first tablets because everyone was worshiping the golden cow during his absence.
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I had a long chat with a professor here last night and he said that Italy is about 99% nominally catholic as they killed all the Protestants and put the pressure on the Jews to convert. The Pope and his sidekicks are into some very heavy graft and have a big influence here. It's a big non-tax paying business.
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Anyway the desire for a spiritual hand hold seems to be built into our lymbic system and we all have to have some sort of ritual to survive. The Southwest Indian took peyote and sweated it out in a primitive sauna, the Jews eat Matzo balls and the Catholics eat the body and drink the blood of Jesus who was just a weird little crazy Rabbi so who knows what is right.
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Let go and let god!!
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XXXXXX
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