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2008-04-04 Home Front: Culture Wars

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Posted by Anonymoose 2008-04-04 10:39|| || Front Page|| [7 views ] Top

#1 I don't know what to make of this. I spoke recently to a Persian emigre (living in CA) who said that among his associates, nearly all had abandoned Islam for Christianity.

However, during the rest of our conversation, he said all kinds of contradictory nonsense so I wasn't sure anything he said was reliable.

Posted by mhw 2008-04-04 11:09|| 2008-04-04 11:09|| Front Page Top

#2 When we realize that the entire population of Africa is one billion people

From wikipedia

"The total population of Africa is estimated at 888 million (as of 2005). It has doubled over the past 28 years, and has quadrupled over the past 55 years (UN estimates [2]). Population is projected to reach one billion by 2015"

Posted by john frum 2008-04-04 11:38|| 2008-04-04 11:38|| Front Page Top

#3 I think cracks are showing in Islam's base, however I don't believe "Droves" are leaving the faith. If the west stood up to Islam and refused to be intimidated by it, maybe. Maybe it would convince the fence sitters or people who are "Fed up" with Islam to leave, but they aren't gonna do that unless they think they can leave safely.

Posted by DarthVader">DarthVader 2008-04-04 12:19|| 2008-04-04 12:19|| Front Page Top

#4 Population growth may be projected, but between the various wars and deadly diseases ravaging the refugees, and the other diseases like malaria and AIDS apparently pandemic in the rest of the continent, how likely is it that the graphs of projected and real population never intersect?

Posted by trailing wife ">trailing wife 2008-04-04 12:26|| 2008-04-04 12:26|| Front Page Top

#5 Sorry. I was responding to john frum's post about African population.

Posted by trailing wife ">trailing wife 2008-04-04 12:32|| 2008-04-04 12:32|| Front Page Top

#6 DarthVader: I know that just among the Anglicans in Africa, they can't build churches fast enough and have to have outdoor services for the converts. Some of their dioceses have doubled or tripled in size and their Archbishops have to continually ordain new bishops and priests.

Ironically, the split in the Episcopal church in the US is forcing many wealthy white congregations to become African missionary churches. They then send large amounts of money to their African Archbishops when they need money most.

Africa either is becoming or already is the largest Anglican communion in the world.

The Catholics, Evangelicals and other Protestant denominations are also being flooded with new members, most converts from Islam.

Saudi Arabia has been tracking Islamic growth around the world, and their only significant new growth is by births, not conversions. Yet at the same time they are losing adults at a tremendous rate.

Posted by Anonymoose 2008-04-04 13:17|| 2008-04-04 13:17|| Front Page Top

#7 Onward Christian Soldiers

Posted by Woodrow Slusorong7967 2008-04-04 13:48|| 2008-04-04 13:48|| Front Page Top

#8 Invade their countries. Kill their leaders. Convert their people to Christianity.

Works for me.

Posted by Excalibur 2008-04-04 14:31|| 2008-04-04 14:31|| Front Page Top

#9 #4 Reverent Tom always just around the corner.

Posted by g(r)omgoru 2008-04-04 15:16|| 2008-04-04 15:16|| Front Page Top

#10 is this another crusades

Posted by sinse 2008-04-04 16:00|| 2008-04-04 16:00|| Front Page Top

#11 I'd heard someone once say that Al Queda started the war because they realized Islam was losing and felt that a clash of civilization might bring back the faithful.

Interesting in light of this type of report.

Posted by rjschwarz 2008-04-04 16:29|| 2008-04-04 16:29|| Front Page Top

#12 Gener speaking, yet another reason for the ISLAMIST "HIDDEN IMAM/MAHDI" TO SHOW UP IN THE NAME OF GOD-ISLAM, BY AND FOR THE SAKE OF SAME. The ISLAMIST SWORD no longer points at both the US-West + Russ-China/Asia > THANKS TO DUBYA + US SUCCESS/ENTRENCHMENT, OSAMA BIN LADEN IS NOW POINTING IT SOLELY AT THE LATTER.

Posted by JosephMendiola 2008-04-04 19:02|| 2008-04-04 19:02|| Front Page Top

#13 rjschwarz: It was more than Islam. It is a war to preserve barbarism against civilization. In this case, Islam is just the face of barbarism; but the conflict is older than Islam.

Civility offers "the better way" than barbarity, as judged by *everyone*. Thus people leave barbarity and try to become civilized. Only those who are invested in barbarity try to resist this stampede. They do so by intimidating or trying to intimidate those on the side of barbarity to stay there.

But that doesn't work. The only thing that will preserve barbarity is for civilization to be utterly destroyed, so that there is no choice.

The great irony of Islam was in its origins, *it* represented civility, compared to everything else around it. And it never got it through its head that it is no longer "the best" or the efficient way, that appeals to people.

If you listed to them, you will hear their bafflement as to why *anyone* would choose anything other than Islam. Because Islam is the better way. It has always been the better, most civilized way. There is no better, no gentler, way to treat women, for example. Beating them is kindness compared to slaughtering them for no reason.

But even they are realizing that Islam is no longer civil. In fact it is primitive, violent and crude. The only supporters it has left are those that are invested in it, and those they can force to remain in it.

And that is why Muslims are leaving it in droves.

Posted by Anonymoose 2008-04-04 19:15|| 2008-04-04 19:15|| Front Page Top

#14 Moose, here's another way to look at it.

Christianity is the religion of modernity and middle class aspiration. The roots of Christianity as we know it is northern Europe where what we call the modern world originated and developed.

So, rather than Islam causing societies to be backward, it's the other way round. Backward societies remain Muslim. Introduce modernity and people want a religion suitable to a modernizing world and that's christianity. Although Budhism and Hinduism, generally non-prosletyzing religions, seem to adapt to modernity quite well.

Observant, middle class Hindus I know, regularly make jokes about their religion.

Posted by phil_b 2008-04-04 20:43|| 2008-04-04 20:43|| Front Page Top

#15 I agree w/ya Phil - the bedouin tribalism of the middle east is still strong there & pre-dates the arival of islam by a thousand years - they just married up the whacky mohammad cult w/the pre-modernity/late B.C. mind-set.

Posted by Broadhead6 2008-04-04 22:39|| 2008-04-04 22:39|| Front Page Top

23:30 BA
23:26 USN,Ret.
23:12 McZoid
23:10 BA
23:06 Broadhead6
23:05 Barbara Skolaut
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22:44 SteveS
22:39 Broadhead6
22:33 Skunky Elmereter3408
22:29 BA
22:28 OldSpook
22:24 RD
22:18 Crolusing tse Tung2745
22:16 Skunky Elmereter3408
22:14 eltoroverde
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22:08 JosephMendiola
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21:57 Barbara Skolaut
21:56 Frank G