I don't think they're trying to force their religion by this, they're trying to coerce respect for their own idea that their religious beliefs are beyond reproach. They want its sanctimony respected and want to dictate the terms. Unfortunately for them, that's not how the rest of the world works, certainly not secular democracies, which are anathema to the socio-political-religious proclivities of the majority of Muslim states.
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Yr hen Gymraeg i mi, Hon ydyw iaith teimladau, Ac adlais i guriadau Fy nghalon ydyw hi --- Mynyddog
Excuse the crudity but :if they can't take a joke. S---- 'em and the horse they rode in on. Their Prophet either spent to much time sitting in the sun or going to the mountain.
When my daughter was in high school, she had a Muslim friend who's family was from Syria. When daughter asked her why she did things a certain way, because after all she's an American, the reply came back "I'm not American, I'm Syrian".
That's the mindset that keeps Muslim immigrants from becoming a part of the country to which they have immigrated, and the root of a lot of their problems. I have friends who have come here from Scotland, and they no longer consider themselves 'Scots' they say "we are Americans" and their proudest moment was when they became citizens. They don't have to give up their cultural trappings (he still wears kilts and eats haggis), but their National Identity is in this country now.
Excuse the crudity but :if they can't take a joke. S---- 'em and the horse they rode in on. Their Prophet either spent to much time sitting in the sun or going to the mountain.
Camac.
I don't share much of your beliefs Camac. But you just took the words right out of my mouth.
Excuse the crudity but :if they can't take a joke. S---- 'em and the horse they rode in on. Their Prophet either spent to much time sitting in the sun or going to the mountain.
Camac.
I don't share much of your beliefs Camac. But you just took the words right out of my mouth.
I'm still trying to figure out what obscene word starts with an "S" (and I was in the Navy so I should know every "cuss" word known to man! )
When my daughter was in high school, she had a Muslim friend who's family was from Syria. When daughter asked her why she did things a certain way, because after all she's an American, the reply came back "I'm not American, I'm Syrian".
That's the mindset that keeps Muslim immigrants from becoming a part of the country to which they have immigrated, and the root of a lot of their problems. I have friends who have come here from Scotland, and they no longer consider themselves 'Scots' they say "we are Americans" and their proudest moment was when they became citizens. They don't have to give up their cultural trappings (he still wears kilts and eats haggis), but their National Identity is in this country now.
Cultural identity can be distinct from national identity. One can be a citizen of one country while culturally belonging to another. Its not just Muslims.
A person has the right to identify themselves as they wish. There's no need to invalidate or delete a previous culture to become American. There's no need to create an either/or choice. This is an entirely different point than that of tolerance for satirical cartoons that reference your religious beliefs, although its part of the issue. Acclimation to an entirely different culture is often a struggle, depending on how different mores and attitudes are. I'd imagine for a Scot it would be far easier than for a Syrian. I work with quite a number of Indians (east Indian) and I see it.
I see no problem with anyone identifying themselves as Syrian even if they're American citizens. However, they also must realize they don't live in Syria and must acquiesce to some expectations of the culture they've adopted in lieu of expecting their adopted culture to adopt their ways. This is more the relevant point regarding satirical comments about their religion. Satire is part of western tradition and there are no sacred cows for a satirist. I understand it hurts, and those who're the subject of such flippancy feel misunderstood. I too feel misunderstood when I hear some comments about America from outsiders who I feel don't understand us. I also feel free speech trumps my personal feelings of offense, and that ideal is not just mine, but its the law of the land.
The word is also used to describe a threaded wood fastener. Up here it also means to fornicate and is sometimes used to replace the F word.
Camac
That explains it. The word wasn't dirty enough for me and my "sailor vocabulary" to recognized as obscene. That word was perfectly acceptable for use even in polite Navy company.
As I remember it the epitaph you were using had been shortened to "and the horse you/they rode in on". The rest of the statement was assumed by both parties.
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