HELP ME ANSWER THIS RIGHT WING SPAM MAIL?

[Th1onein]

I don't know enough about this topic to comment on it, but I'm sure there must be a lot of bullshit involved in it (as usual). Anyone else?

Islam: What the West Needs to Know:

Warfare, and terrorism in the name of Islam, stems directly from the teachings and example of the Prophet Muhammad and the commands of the Koran.
Muhammad: a warlord with the blood of thousands on his hands, commands Muslims to follow his example, as Christians are to follow Christ.
The Koran -- considered by Muslims to be dictated word for word by Allah -- explicitly commands violence against non-Muslims who resist conversion or surrender.
"Jihad" or "inner struggle" over temptation, as some Muslim apologists claim, makes it clear how it denotes warfare against non-Muslims in order to bring about the universal rule of Islamic law.
Violent death in jihad is, according to the Koran, the only assurance of salvation.
Following Muhammad's death, his 'rightly-guided' successors carried his wars to three continents -- fighting, enslaving, and massacring countless Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians, Hindus, and others.
Islam, unlike Christianity, flourished and spread primarily through conquest, not peaceful evangelism.
The Crusades, mischaracterized as a violent assault on peaceful Muslims, were largely a belated response against centuries of Muslim conquest of Christian lands.
The Islamic principle of 'religious deception' -- which enjoins Muslims to deceive non-Muslims to advance the cause of Islam – is commonly used by Muslim groups today.
Throughout its history, Islam has never recognized a distinction between religious and civil authority.
Islamic "sharia" law governs every aspect of religious, political, and personal life -- amounting to a form of totalitarianism analogous to Communism.
Wake up America ! These sorry Muslim bastards are relentless and won’t stop until the USA is under Islamic rule.

Are you sure you want to vote for Obama?

[mrreowwr_kittty]

1. Remind the person that GWB has done more to usher in the spread of militant Islam than anyone prior

Ask the writer if he's sure he wants a continuation of Bush policies.

[muntrv]

2. Obama is United Church of Christ, not Muslim.

[crim son]

3. Uh, Obama isn't Muslim.

All the rest aside, what does Islam have to do with Obama?

[muntrv]

4. ...But enslaving Black Americans and killing American Indians is Christ's will.

:sarcasm:

[baldguy]

5. If he's worried about an Islamic takeover of America

It's already happened.

[Dr.Phool]

6. Did it come with Clinton campaign letterhead?

:rofl: :popcorn: :rofl:

[Iggo]

7. Reply all...

...and add NAMBLA and Al Jazeera.

[boobooday]

8. I don't know much about the subject either

But this made me LOL:
Islam, unlike Christianity, flourished and spread primarily through conquest, not peaceful evangelism.

[customerserviceguy]

9. Just about every Western religion

and perhaps a few Eastern ones, as well, have been perpetuated by the sword.

Not that you have to answer anyone about this, but if you really wanted to, you could take a lot of the warmongering parts of the Bible (the Old Testament is chock full of them) and ask Bible-believing Christians if they still feel that way.

[blue sky at night]

10. oh, this is simple...

that old question: "are you now, or have you ever been....insane?" then tell them when your brain comes back from the cleaners we can talk.

[alfredo]

11. Send these quotes to him along with telling him that Obama is Christian

"We are continuing this policy in bleeding America to the point of bankruptcy. Allah willing, and nothing is too great for Allaha." Osama bin Laden

"We, alongside the mujahedeen, bled Russia for 10 years until it went bankrupt and was forced to withdraw in defeat," - Osama bin Laden

Obama and Hillary are smart enough not to fight the fight on Osama bin Laden's terms.

[Cresent City Kid]

12. peaceful evangalism?

That's a lot of crap to swallow in one bite. Where do I start? No offense to christians, but to claim that the spread of christianity was totally non-violent is revisionist history, to put it lightly.

What strikes me is that they go through so much trouble to explain why islam is bad, but give no explanation as to why we should think Obama is muslim, as if it were a known and undisputable fact.

Islam = bad
Obama = islam
Obama = bad

Flawless logic!

[margotb822]

13. Here you go! Debunked!

People are talking about this on the DNC blog. Someone did some looking and found the letter on this site: http://www.williamcordaro.com/index3.html

which was submitted by this woman: http://www.vosaw.com/index.html

Debunking victory outreach: http://www.rickross.com/reference/victory_outreach/victory_outreach1.html

Happy Truth!

[Th1onein]

14. Uhhhh! HELLO? Are you full of shit or just mistaken?

NONE of these links go to anything that discusses what I was talking about. These are all links to some Christian Evangelical sites.

I want some of what you're smoking, dude.

[margotb822]

15. The email you received

Is very similar to the letter posted at the first link.

Let me break it down for you:

1) That email is one of many similar emails that have been circulating. It is posted on the internet at different sites, but all leading back to the same woman. That was the first link.

2) The second link is the website of the woman who posted it.

3) This is a link that debunks that crazy RW operation of the woman who posted the email.


Is that clear enough for you?

[Th1onein]

16. I'm sorry, but it's not clear at all.

I've gone to the first site. Nothing but a page talking about a trip to Israel.

WHERE is the letter debunked? Can you point me to that?

[margotb822]

18. Hope this works better

The idea I was getting after is that the email is a hoax started by a corrupt RW evangelical outfit. The third link discusses the corruption of Victory Outreach, which is the source of the letter.

I guess I went more towards debunking the source, not the actual email.

As far as the email is concerned, anyone who has even a small grasp of history will remember the Crusades (a violent struggle in the name of Christ), which has not been mischaracterized. The Crusades were a series of military conflicts of a religious character waged by much of Christian Europe against external and internal threats. Crusades were fought against Muslims, pagan Slavs, Russian and Greek Orthodox Christians, Mongols, Cathars, Hussites, and political enemies of the popes. Crusaders took vows and were granted an indulgence for past sins. So, Catholics were not just fighting Muslims, but many other ethnicities and religions.

Now, I'm not Muslim, but I have done some studying. I think your best bet would be to talk about the five pillars of Islam:

Shahada (declaration of faith)
Salat (ritual prayer five times each day)
Zakat (Islamic tax or tithing)
Sawm (fasting during Ramadan)
Hajj (Pilgrimage to Mecca at least once during life).

Obviously, jihad is not in the five pillars of Islam. But, here is some information about jihad: According to scholar John Esposito, Jihad requires Muslims to "struggle in the way of God" or "to struggle to improve one's self and/or society." Jihad is directed against the devil's inducements, aspects of one's own self, or against a visible enemy. The four major categories of jihad that are recognized are Jihad against one's own self (Jihad al-Nafs), Jihad of the tongue (Jihad al-lisan), Jihad of the hand (Jihad al-yad), and Jihad of the sword (Jihad as-sayf). Islamic jurisprudence focuses on regulating the conditions and practice of Jihad as-sayf, the only form of warfare permissible under Islamic law, and thus the term Jihad is usually used in fiqh manuals in reference to military combat. A minority among the Sunni scholars sometimes refer to this Islamic duty as the sixth pillar of Islam, though it occupies no such official status.

And, Islam promotes religious tolerance. Here is a quote from the Quran: "Those who believe (in the Quran), and those who follow the Jewish (scriptures), and the Christians...and (all) who believe in God and the last day and work righteousness, shall have their reward with their Lord; on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve." The Qur'an, 2:62

To talk about Sharia law as if it is the most evil thing ever ignores the fact that for much of Christian history, Christians have lived under the strict rules of the bible, and many of our laws are drawn from Christian teaching. In every faith, there are moderates and conservatives. Not every Muslim state operates under Sharia law.

Whoever wrote this email is obviously extremely biased against Islam. Whatever happened to the religious tolerance that our Constitution protects? And, really, if we are going to say that Christians have only done good, how can Bush be a Christian? He's started wars on false principles, resulting in the death of hundreds of thousands, he has oppressed his people and subverted the rule of law, he is a drunk and a drug addict, and he shows no remorse for his behavior. Very un-Christian. If you ask me, Bush is one of the people who has taken a vow and asked to be granted indulgences for his sins.

If anyone needs practice being tolerant, send them to this site: http://www.religioustolerance.org/islam.htm

[Reader Rabbit]

17. Reply All: "Paranoia will destroy ya!"

And then the words of Mark Twain:

Never argue with a fool. People might not know the difference.

[uppityperson]

19. 3 things.

What does any part of an anti-religion rant have to do with Obama?

Secondly, looks like "Islam: What the West Needs to Know:" is a documentary movie. Here's the back cover of dvd. (thought was giving link but got graphic)

or go to here and take a look. Or google.
http://www.whatthewestneedstoknow.com

Thirdly, fundamentalists exist in every group, every religion.

Finally, wtf does this have to do with Obama?

[jmowreader]

20. You KNOW wtf it has to do with Obama!

Recall what the man's middle name is.

Obviously, to a good God-fearing Christian, a man whose middle name is Hussein is unfit to be president because, even though he's a Christian (and folks, this overemphasis on Christianity in his campaign is very close to turning me into an all-out Hillary supporter), no one who shares a name with one of the most notorious thugs of the 20th Century could EVER be a CHRISTIAN!!!!!

And just as obviously, it's perfectly fine if the family of the preznit you only wish could run for a third term, and a fourth and a fifth after that, has funded, armed or both every dictator in the 20th Century, including Saddam and Hitler.

[uppityperson]

21. So he shares a middle name with a whole lot of people.

I share a middle name with a saint and a whole lot of other people but I don't see anyone worshipping me. That should be the response, "wtf does it have to do with Obama you narrow minded fundamentalist cretin" (not you reader but back to the OP's person).

[jmowreader]

22. Sounds like a plan to me...