revtimothybland

Hhhhhmmmmm, you make an excellent point, Pan. Worth thinking about, anyway.

I agree, to a point. I think there needs to be a happy medium, so that we can eventually weed out the economical concerns. I really don't disagree with you, otherwise.

Dudely Do-Right. As in "a dud who does the right thing." You ever watch that show? It was one of my favs as a kid.

Amazing how people of differing religions can come to the same conclusion. To quote the late, great, Roger Zelazny: "All roads lead to Amber."

We will always remember the good times you gave us, Robin. Continuing to go back and watch your films and tv specials is the only way we can repay you for your services, but, by God and Goddess, that's what I'm going to do. Rest in Peace, my friend. Blessed Be

Youch, I think it's fairly obvious now that you don't understand anything. as to "Go out and get it" I'm talking about information. I rely on my own experiences to tell me the truth, not the media. What the media reports on is always coloured by what they want us to hear. You talk about muslims as a general statement when I talk about them as individuals. If you'd actually taken the time to get to know one, you'd see I'm right. And quit calling me he/she/it. You've been told I'm a he, and if you don't take my word, look at my profile on the site.

Apology accepted, no harm, no foul. I tend to get a little carried away sometimes, so I do apologize if what I said came out wrong, or at least wrong in your eyes. That was certainly not my intent. And you don't offend me. If you did, I'd have told you. I'm pretty blunt that way.

Thank you, Brother Kaman, I agree.

First of all, I said that a particular ACTION was bigoted and stupid. If you took offense to that, that's your problem, but I didn't call anyone by those names. As to my debating skills......this is a debate? I thought we were expressing our opinions. I believe that Scott was correct in his response. The bigotry and stupidity I referred to were, in fact, IMPLIED, seeing as how I referred to an action, and not specific people. Thank you for standing up like that, Scott, I appreciate it even if no one else does.

Ted Bundy and David Berkowitz were the nicest people imaginable until their nightly activities were discovered. That doesn't mean that most white Americans are serial killers, does it? It means we should be more cautious of PEOPLE, not because of something specific, like Islam, but because there is always someone out there wanting to hurt people. To be more cautious just because someone is Muslim is purely discriminatory, bigoted, and flat out stupid.

I never said I was an expert in the Muslim world. But, apparently, you and I have seen different Muslims, and, therefore, garner different results. I've fought terrorists, and I've had moving discussions with our translators. I've seen good people as well as bad come out of that world. You'll never be able to convince me that they're all bad. I don't get this info from the media, I go out and get it myself. That's what you don't understand, Youch. And I don't think you ever will.

While this is true, I still don't believe that it's a direct vote anymore. Congress is ultimately responsible for just about everything horrible in this country, and the president has been a puppet of them since after Jefferson. Congress controls the vote, keeping itself stocked with members that will continue with their legacy of greed and corruption, and, to this end, they control who's available for us to vote for in the first place. Thus, our voices are being stripped from us, using our own system, and we COULD do something about it, but no one will. Too much fear.

No, the Electoral College chooses our winners. Popularity vote counts for exactly ca ca. The people's voice is slowly being taken away.

First of all, the entire subject is that Muslims themselves are not the issue. Radicals are. You're the one missing the point. I fail to see how I've proven myself "intolerant." By the very definition of the word, the fact that I don't blame Muslims as a whole for the actions of a few proves I AM the tolerant one. You, on the other hand, seem to be very "intolerant" of anyone who doesn't share your opinion, as well as of Muslims themselves. Because the Israelite Jews and the Muslims of the Middle East have been fighting over what they both call the Promised Land of their respective religions since time immemorial. You forget that Israel wants to wipe Muslims out too. And because of that, you will never know peace, or tolerance, or anything remotely good. Why are you even one this site? He didn't say anything about avoiding the truth. In fact, he DID say that it is there, and that we're trying to focus on the good, not the bad. Again, your need to be absolutely correct about this is, as Edward said, very annoying. Seeing as you're the one who's not listening to reason, yeah, "forced down our throats" is pretty accurate. As to my "debate style," since you don't have one, I'm fairly certain that you have no right to judge mine. But you're going to, as always, just another internet bully who can't seem to understand that his insults and lack of understanding are simply not wanted. The topic of this particular discussion is "Understanding Islam-Worth the Effort." Let's stick to that, shall we? If you don't WANT to understand, Youch, that's your prerogative, but don't force those of us who DO want to understand to your way of thinking. It's not going to work.

Amen, Blessed Be, Namaste, and all those others, man.