Can you provide your rational for the statement that terrorism is "mainly a Muslim method"? Beyond the simple disrespect I think it shows to one of the world's largest faith communities, a simple comparison of the world's population of Muslims and Terrorists should suggest that terrorism is at most practiced by a distant fraction of the Muslim population. There are also the litany of non-Muslim terrorists in the world, some of them masquerading as "legitamate" government leaders. This says nothing of the uncredited constructive contributions that Muslims are making in the world at large and perhaps, in our own backyard. It is even more distressing that this comment would come in a thread about the safety of our schools. "Could it happen here?" Perhaps. But the great majority of school terrorism that has been manifest in our country's schools has not been perpetrated by religious or ethnic minorities. Just my two cents. Matt Flory Mac Groveland
Tom & Elsa Thompson <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: Terrorism is a tactic, but it is also a religious philosophy. Suicide bombing and martyrdom are taught in Islamic Mosques and schools. A suicide bomber is taught that they will get to heaven and have 21 virgins waiting for them. Now, this is not that every Muslim is a terrorist, only that terrorism is accepted and promoted in some Muslim communities and countries. But, it has been mainly a Muslim method of attacking innocent civilians since the 1972 Olympics in Munich. The GOP is not the one who started "banging the drum" about an attack prior to the elections. It was the left wing media (ABC, WCCO, NBC, CBS, MPR, NPR, CNN, etc) that brought it up when Spain acquiesced to a terror attack just days before their elections. This message of an attack before the elections has been harped on by every major network, right and left leaning since. Yes, the Chechnyians want a change in government where they live. However, that would be like saying the blue states and red states here should use terror against each other. Terrorism is wrong no matter what, no matter where. To use acts of terror on innocent civilians (and especially children) in Israel or Russia is wrong. We should condemn it and use all means at our disposal to stop it. The people using terror cannot be just given a pass with the words, "method of either resistance, protest, desperation or war". They are criminals, they are terrorists. They use bombs and kill innocent people and children and use fear of such an attack as their weapon. Reagan may have called them "freedom fighters" I can't say that is true, however, Reagan nor any GOP member every advocated the use of terrorist tactics against civilians. Why a "pissed off Iraqi"? Because we were too slow to act over in Iraq to save their family from slaughter at the hands of a cruel dictator, Saddam Hussein? We should have finished the battle under Bush 41, but that was his mistake and he lost the election after that. We in St Paul and the metro area have to worry. We have had a large a number of arrests of "suspected" terrorists in the area. It may be a coincidence, but then again it may not. Tom Thompson Como Park Original Message: Tim, fear is the best thing going for the GOP, so don't think for a second that the beating of the drum is going to do anything but get louder before the election. Terrorism is a tactic, it is not a philosophy, a religion or a political persuasion. The GOP and the right wing news media (and even more so the far right wing news media) blurs the lines between the tactic of terrorism and the multitude of organizations that use terror as a method of either resistance, protest, desperation or war. In Russia the Chechnyan's have been attempting to acquire independence since the Soviet Union collapsed. Their lands became occupied by the Russian's during the early 1800's. The Ukraine, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and several other white Christian principalities all achieved their independence from the Soviet Union during the collapse of the communist regime, with the open backing of the United States and the European community. Chechnya has not had the same support. I am sure that the fear is that we don't want any small Islamic states operating on Russia's door step and that as Chechnya goes so goes the rest of the region. But, the Chechnyans aren't going to come over here and blow up a school. They want independence from Russia! Are there links between Alkida and the Chechnyans? Maybe, but as they use to say there are only six degrees of separation between any two people. I know its, hard and I know the news outlets (CBS, NBC, ABC) find it much to hard to differentiate between any two Arabs or any two followers of Islam, but watching the right wing froth at the mouth over the plight of the Russian's and link their troubles to ours, when only a few years ago Reagan called them freedom fighters is a bit of a twist. In the 80's, one of Reagan's tactics in fighting communism was to inspire nationalism in the Soviet Union. This is just one more of those "nations" fighting the Imperial Soviet Union/Russia. They aren't coming over to blow up a junior high (not to say that some pissed off Iraqi wouldn't, but we know they are all throwing flowers at us). Chuck Repke Saint Paul _____________________________________________ To Join: St. Paul Issues Forum Rules Discussion Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] _____________________________________________ NEW ADDRESS FOR LIST: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe, modify subscription, or get your password - visit: http://www.mnforum.org/mailman/listinfo/stpaul Archive Address: http://www.mnforum.org/mailman/private/stpaul/ --------------------------------- Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail - 50x more storage than other providers! _____________________________________________ To Join: St. Paul Issues Forum Rules Discussion Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] _____________________________________________ NEW ADDRESS FOR LIST: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To subscribe, modify subscription, or get your password - visit: http://www.mnforum.org/mailman/listinfo/stpaul Archive Address: http://www.mnforum.org/mailman/private/stpaul/
