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Aneirin -> RE: I hope that dumbass preacher in fl is proud of himself (4/3/2011 6:56:40 AM)
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quote:
There's a reason for this. When you stifle human individuality and enforce conformity among a group of people you encourage people to believe that the majority is always right and also hostility towards those who don't fit in with the norm.
This is true if you were born and raised in a one horse town in the middle of Nebraska, in the middle of a massive land mass composed of other states which is the United States. Head anywhere out of Nebraska in any direction and you will come to other states with one horse towns which are pretty much the same as Nebraska.
This is also true if you were circumcized as a child, were conditioned to pray five times a day east towards Mecca, believing in your Muslim brotherhood and that Muhammad is the one and only true prophet and Allah is the one and only true God.
We have the same thing here in the UK. Take somewhere as Yorkshire, for example. Yorkshire on a map is five different counties - West Yorkshire, North Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, Cleveland and Humberside, but in people's heads it's still Yorkshire, there is still that same parochialism, the same as what you find in Northern Ireland, in Scotland, in Wales, the same as what you find anywhere else.
This is why when that person moves from the one horse town in Nebraska to somewhere like New York, like someone from Yorkshire moving to London, they feel alone and isolated among all the diversity, the differences in people's faces, they feel alienated, and this explains why some of them join cults and other subcultures.
This is why we also have the Taliban in the first place. When you are conditioned to believe that the West in all its cultural superiority is immoral, indecent, when you feel it goes against the fundamental teachings of Islam you start to feel defensive and start wanting to do something about it.
It's the exact same logic and thinking as the reaction to 9/11 and the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center, which most Americans perceived to be an attack on Americans, their way of life, their culture, their identity and this is what started the whole war on terrorism.
This is why it's such a problem for Americans right now. The Internet is working against what we believe to be American culture, and that what was once internal, existing only within the borders of the United States, is transcending the borders simply through being online and accessible to people from all over the world - take this message board for example. It's breaking down that cultural imperialism the Americans once had, and showing American society and culture in its true light.
Thing is, if you are a public person, such as a preacher, a politician, just like an actor or a singer, you have a greater influence on society and culture and this carries with it a moral responsibility not shared with the rest of society. This is because you are representative. You also share some of the responsibility of how people respond and react to what you say, what you do, and how you express yourself in a public capacity.
Ever wondered why it is illegal to burn a national flag? Or to destroy a banknote? It's not just the burning of the cloth or the paper which makes it an issue, but the destruction of what it symbolizes. The Holy Koran, like the Holy Bible, isn't just a book, it's a book which carries a lot of symbolism and a lot of meaning for many people.
It's no different to an angry mob of Islamic fundamentalists gathered in a town square burning the American flag, which can be perceived to be an offensive, hostile act towards all Americans. Now imagine that the United States is an occupied terrority occupied by Islamic soldiers, let's say the Taliban as an example. Now let's say for example Americans everywhere are under the control of the Taliban, and a mullah decides to burn the Stars and Stripes in a mosque in downtown Kabul. Would that not cause offense among Americans and provoke a demonstration?
This in itself explains that special UK-US relationship. Unlike the United States, which is somewhat geographically isolated, having Canada to the north and Mexico to the south and a large ocean east and west we are a relatively small group of islands off the coast of Europe. Our history, which is much longer, is filled with conflicts, both internally and externally, wars with Ireland, with France, with Russia, with every other European nation apart from Poland and Greece, and this also explains why we have diplomacy - our part of the bargain - down to a fine art. Imagine what would have happened had Churchill not been there together with Stalin and Roosevelt after the end of the Second World War.
I'm not writing this to justify what the preacher did, nor to justify the reaction, because I see both as gross acts of human stupidity.
But there is a relationship between the two incidents and for me at least, that relationship is perfectly clear. Both understandable, and both stupid at the same time.
[sm=jaw.gif] An excellent piece of writing Stella, bravo !
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