Burning a Holy Text

[karadan]

No it isn't, not in this context.  

Burning books is bad, period. Doing it to incite a rabid response from an already rabid minority is even worse, especially if doing so has the possibility of converting moderates to fundies.

Most moderate muslims didn't care about the cartoon drawings. A whole fuck load of them are going bannanas right now about this koran burning business.

[PoopShoot]

Doing it to incite a rabid response from an already rabid minority is even worse, especially if doing so has the possibility of converting moderates to fundies.

This is how it is exactly the same as drawing an inflammatory cartoon.  I'm not saying that the church itself isn't retarded, they are for trying to censor something as simple as an opposing religion while pretending to like the freedom of religion we have in this country, I'm saying that it's not state sanctioned, so it's not a successful censorship at all, but rather an event that shows the world how retarded this one church is.

Most moderate muslims didn't care about the cartoon drawings. A whole fuck load of them are going bannanas right now about this koran burning business.

[karadan]

Fair enough. I understand your point but i still cannot condone the burning of a book, no matter what the subject.

I just think the media are loving this too much because they know the fallout from it will get them more column inches. I bet this blows up far more than the cartoon fiasco.

[PoopShoot]

Fair enough. I understand your point but i still cannot condone the burning of a book, no matter what the subject.

I don't condone statements of hate in any form (aside from trolling, certain hate speech facilitates it SOOOO much), neither do I condone censorship.  That said, I hold the freedom to say something fucked up higher than the freedom to be offended by something said.

I just think the media are loving this too much because they know the fallout from it will get them more column inches. I bet this blows up far more than the cartoon fiasco.

Probably.

[philosoraptor]

I'm with karadan.  I think the book burning crosses a line that the drawing of cartoons did not.  I can't help but have a very visceral reaction to book burnings because of instances like the Holocaust and the Crusades, where the burning of books was a fairly common occurrence.  The fact that they are doing this on 9/11 makes it a thousand times worse-there's an implied statement that goes along with that, and I don't think it's fair to the good, moderate Muslims in this country.  It's like a big fuck you, essentially.  Muslims were killed in the 9/11 attacks too, so burning the Qu'ran on 9/11 seems especially hateful and disrespectful.  No one is forcing this congregation in Florida to read the Qu'ran or believe in what it says.

[Thumpalumpacus]

I personally think that the church should've  followed a simple order of operations:  1) Think 2) Then, and only then, act.

I don't have a problem with them burning books -- check that, I do somewhat, in the sense that though they're burning a third-rate Bible knock-off now, they would if they could burn the best thoughts of man in the same flames -- but they have the right to do so.

And yes, the idea of anyone getting angry enough over disrespect to a book to get violent is in itself retarded.  That doesn't change the fact that there are many, many stupid people out there.  

Without blaming this church for hypersensitive Muslims, they certainly could've put out their message inRE Islam in a manner that doesn't tend to inflame passions  as well as books.

As I've written elsewhere, I think the best answer would be to hold a Bible-burning on the church's doorstep.

[humblesmurph]

I think that the media gives this so much coverage, but I also dislike  how they cover it.  It is just such a matter of fact kind of thing.  Pastor is going to burn books. Some people object. He's received death threats.  I think that in a country where the media rarely if ever gives us the straight truth, the lack of negative spin to this action is puzzling.  This guy should be derided as the hateful, hypocritical, moron that he is everywhere his name shows up in print or on a screen.   Free speech protects his right to give his crazy message, but a responsible media should show the public just how crazy it is.  Show line by line similarities between the Qu'ran and the Bible.  Show the similarities between the tenants of both religions.  Interview American Muslims to show that they are people too.  I know these things are being done on a small scale, but they need to be done every single time that it is brought up.

It's the hypocrisy of the action that is the compelling story.  Not the shear hate.

[PoopShoot]

I'm with karadan.  I think the book burning crosses a line that the drawing of cartoons did not.  I can't help but have a very visceral reaction to book burnings because of instances like the Holocaust and the Crusades, where the burning of books was a fairly common occurrence...

This whole line of reasoning relies on emotion.  Again, successful troll is successful.

[Tank]

Profile: Dove World Outreach Center

The plan by the Dove World Outreach Center, a small evangelical church in the US state of Florida, to burn Korans on 11 September has drawn worldwide condemnation.

Its pastor, the Reverend Terry Jones, says that as an American Christian he has a right to burn Islam's holy book because it is "full of lies".

Despite acknowledging that he has "no experience... whatsoever" of the Koran, he argues that it is "evil" because it espouses something other than Biblical truth and incites radical, violent behaviour among Muslims...

More coverage.

[Tank]

What we don't 'get' is that the Quran is not simply a book like a Steven King novel, or for that matter the Bible. While the Bible is a 'record' of the life and times of Jesus the Quran is the word of God and for Muslims that is much more important than somebody drawing a cartoon of Mohamed. Asking a devout Muslim to stand by while a Quran is desecrated would be akin to asking you to stand by while your mother/father/sister/brother/son/daughter was gang raped. I don't condone that world view at all. But to fail to acknowledged that world view exists and is very real to Muslims is just plain stupid. Terry Jones is just a shit disturbing pin brained moron.

[Tank]

I'm with karadan.  I think the book burning crosses a line that the drawing of cartoons did not.  I can't help but have a very visceral reaction to book burnings because of instances like the Holocaust and the Crusades, where the burning of books was a fairly common occurrence...

This whole line of reasoning relies on emotion. Again, successful troll is successful.

Not sure I follow the underlined.

[philosoraptor]

I'm with karadan.  I think the book burning crosses a line that the drawing of cartoons did not.  I can't help but have a very visceral reaction to book burnings because of instances like the Holocaust and the Crusades, where the burning of books was a fairly common occurrence...

This whole line of reasoning relies on emotion. Again, successful troll is successful.

Not sure I follow the underlined.

I'm assuming the implication is that Terry Jones is the troll, and that by having people respond emotionally to him burning the Qu'ran, he's achieved his goal.

[karadan]

This whole line of reasoning relies on emotion. Again, successful troll is successful.

Not sure I follow the underlined.

*edit* Beaten to it, and more eloquently so by Philosoraptor.

[philosoraptor]

I don't have a problem having an emotional response to this.  Personally, I would distrust a person that wasn't disturbed by this sort of thing on some level.  If that makes Terry Jones a successful troll, so be it.  The emotional response is only part of the reason I object to it, though, on top of other logical reasons.  I don't think an emotional response in this sort of situation is totally illogical or inappropriate, given the history of book burnings.

[PoopShoot]

I'm with karadan.  I think the book burning crosses a line that the drawing of cartoons did not.  I can't help but have a very visceral reaction to book burnings because of instances like the Holocaust and the Crusades, where the burning of books was a fairly common occurrence...

This whole line of reasoning relies on emotion. Again, successful troll is successful.

Not sure I follow the underlined.

They're trolling for an emotional response from the world.  Every emotional response to their shenanigans is a success.