philbo

Dr Al-Qaradawi is coming to visit (in the UK, that is - he's not allowed into the US)... See http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3874893.stm for details

Amongst other things, he considers suicide bombing (even using children) to be a valid way of fighting repression:

I just want to say that I do not believe anybody who preaches this kind of rubbish can be sincere in telling other people to go off and kill/die, when they so obviously aren't going to do it themselves. If it really is such a great thing to do, why haven't the guys who are preaching death and destruction done it already?

Sorry, just had to get that off my chest...

Plognark

I think that's probably fairly obvious to anyone with half a brain...or at least half of one that hasn't been brainwashed in fundamentalism of some stripe.

philbo

You'd like to think so, wouldn't you? But would you be surprised if someone at one of his prayer sessions stood up and said "OK, if it's so great to martyr yourself... why don't YOU do it?"? I sure as hell would be.

Plognark

Thus my brainwashing/fundamentalism escape clause

THX1138

[vent] I don't mean to sidetrack this thread, but I am sick & damn tired of hearing Islamo-fascists talking about "martyrs" & "martyrdom." A "martyr," in the most general sense of the word is someone who has been killed in the name of a cause. A "martyr" is not someone who does the killing. This is a sick reversal of who is the "victim" in the act of terrorism. If these bastards want to call these murderers "heroes," fine, whatever - heroes for their twisted ideals, perhaps! - But to call them "martyrs" is a gross misnomer! Someone who kills is not a martyr, but someone who is killed. [/rant]

J