Lights go out on German anti-Islam protesters

[Beuting 1st MRB]

The current upcoming anti-Islamification rallies in Germany, organized by the protest group PEGIDA ("Patriotic Europeans against the Islamization of the West"), make me feel very concerned. In my opinion this anti-Islam movement is just a valve for the dissatisfaction of the people because of the general problems and difficulties regarding to our society and inner german policy. The recent terrorist activities of radical Islamic groups such as the IS or the Taliban gave them just an excuse to act against muslims in general. Nevertheless I hope our politicians see that as an invitation to face the inner problems of our country.

At last I'm glad a majority of people put a sign against racism, xenophobia and prejudices.

Some 30,000 Germans Protest Against Anti-Islam Rallies (The New York Times)

'Not in our light.' Cologne Cathedral protests anti-Islamization rally (CNN London)

[J. Hill]

racism against Islam is just as bad as their racism against non Islams. That said however, I think that ANY move to instigate Sharia law in any country should be put down swiftly. There are to many idiot liberal judges who will allow it.

[Bradley 1st MRB]

We have a similar group in the UK called the EDL (English Defence League). There's a lot of parallels between the two groups. Even if these groups have valid criticisms of Islam as an ideology, they're infested with right wing elements who do harbour prejudiced and bigoted views. They cause a lot of fear mongering with their exaggerated claims of the "Islamisation of the West". Fortunately the majority of people can see through this. The counter demonstrators against the EDL have had much higher numbers. We have sharia courts in the UK, they have next to no legal jurisdiction at all, but are respected within Muslim communities. It is an individual's choice if they want to resolve their disputes in this sharia courts. They only have legal jurisdiction if both parties agree on the court being their arbitrator. This however doesn't prevent individuals from being pressured from within their community to use sharia courts. They can be demonstrated to have a positive effect, but also to cause harm to those that chose to live by it. And let's not forget Western legal systems are not perfect themselves. It's a very complex issue and an interesting topic for debate.

[S. Hill]

A book comes to mind of the title that is part of the "Sword of Truth" series. Wizards First Rule is the name of the book.

"Wizard's First Rule: People are stupid, given proper motivation, almost anyone will believe almost anything. Because people are stupid, they will believe a lie because they want to believe it's true, or because they are afraid it might be true. People's heads are full of knowledge, facts, and beliefs, and most of it is false, yet they think it all true. People are stupid; they can only rarely tell the difference between a lie and the truth, and yet they are confident they can, and so are all the easier to fool."

This is mostly from ignorance of some things where they can be fooled. I try to learn the facts of what IS true and try to read between the lines of things or events to know what the possible truth is. at time i myself am fooled, but i still strive to learn the truth and thus why i always tell the truth. even if it means i lose friends, family, or those i love or care about. I stick by the old adage of "The truth will set you free" and "The Truth is the only true way to live with honesty in your heart and soul" I rarely ever lie anymore and only to save someone from being hurt or abused if i am involved in that mix or stuck in the middle. but for the most part you can still tell the truth without lies but you only tell PART of the truth. Now if this movement does indeed intends to stop sharia law from being put in the European country's then its for the best i think, but at the same time it should not try to put down Islamist forcing them to live a certain way. i think a happy medium should be found, but the extremists will never allow that. its the extremists that cause the most problems in the world i believe either in religion, politics, government (such as the military), or even in the organizations such as a group that calls for radical change and such. I do believe its up to Us as individuals to know what needs to be changed and work together to help solve problems or issues that most people are unhappy about. If that can happen then this world will change for the better. But if the extremists want to change the world to there view and make the rest suffer, then i say an eye for an eye, and if they want fire, give them fire, and watch them burn cause i will bring the marshmallows. I will not abide any extreme organization or group who allows innocents to suffer all because they want there way of life to be forced onto others such as sharia law. that law is WAY outdated for this modern age and as i see it, if those group of people had put that law to rest in the past we could be on the verge of an enlightened age of knowledge.

[Beuting 1st MRB]

I didn't know about that organization in the UK, but the similarity is obvious.

Basically I totally agree with you all, that this is a very difficult issue and I share your opinion. Steven, you refered to the most important point, the truth. And here I start asking myself what they really want, as the claims of PEGIDA are not really clear to me and the founder Lutz Bachmann is not a trustworthy person in my impression of him.

I really like your quote by the way