Comments on: Melanie Phillips is a terrorist http://www.thebadrash.com/2006/09/01/melanie-phillips-is-a-terrorist/ A blog from Barcelona, Catalonia, covering politics, culture, society and more Sun, 05 Feb 2012 12:18:11 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Nicholas Meadhttp://www.thebadrash.com/2006/09/01/melanie-phillips-is-a-terrorist/#comment-468 Nicholas Mead Mon, 04 Sep 2006 18:33:17 +0000 http://thebadrash.com/?p=549#comment-468 That's an eloquently argued post and as you say, the lack of context Phillips gives to contemporary politics harks back to George Galloway's argument with the Sky journalist ("For God's sake, try and have a memory longer than four weeks!"). Sometimes I can't decide whether such people, that are as you say relatively "well educated", ignore historical fact on purpose to suit their own agenda or have been so indoctrinated, they don't know what the truth is. This dogcrap Islam v Christianity debate - most famously propagated by Samuel Huntingdon's in his book "The Clash of Civilisations" - ignores deeper truths. Its as effective as "anti-americanism" in stopping debate in its tracks - a ridiculous over simplification that it is heavily endorsed by elites to stop people looking at the issue rationally. The problems in the Middle East have been inflamed by Western foreign policy - it just so happens that the majority of the West is Christian. The branch of religion is neither here nor there - it is merely a cloak for those in power to dress-up aggression and greed as salvation and humanitarianism. The piece below sums it up very well and I intend to get hold of the book to understand more about this issue: http://www.counterpunch.org/fisk02062006.html That's an eloquently argued post and as you say, the lack of context Phillips gives to contemporary politics harks back to George Galloway's argument with the Sky journalist ("For God's sake, try and have a memory longer than four weeks!"). Sometimes I can't decide whether such people, that are as you say relatively "well educated", ignore historical fact on purpose to suit their own agenda or have been so indoctrinated, they don't know what the truth is.

This dogcrap Islam v Christianity debate – most famously propagated by Samuel Huntingdon's in his book "The Clash of Civilisations" – ignores deeper truths. Its as effective as "anti-americanism" in stopping debate in its tracks – a ridiculous over simplification that it is heavily endorsed by elites to stop people looking at the issue rationally. The problems in the Middle East have been inflamed by Western foreign policy – it just so happens that the majority of the West is Christian. The branch of religion is neither here nor there – it is merely a cloak for those in power to dress-up aggression and greed as salvation and humanitarianism.

The piece below sums it up very well and I intend to get hold of the book to understand more about this issue:

http://www.counterpunch.org/fisk02062006.html

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]]> By: Tomhttp://www.thebadrash.com/2006/09/01/melanie-phillips-is-a-terrorist/#comment-467 Tom Sun, 03 Sep 2006 11:18:39 +0000 http://thebadrash.com/?p=549#comment-467 She's not. Her analysis is predicated on lies and half-truths. You're clearly buying into the 'religious conflict' myth. I can't think of a single conflict in which religion has ever been anything more than a tool used to galvanise believers into indignant anger. She's not. Her analysis is predicated on lies and half-truths. You're clearly buying into the 'religious conflict' myth. I can't think of a single conflict in which religion has ever been anything more than a tool used to galvanise believers into indignant anger.

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]]> By: pommygranatehttp://www.thebadrash.com/2006/09/01/melanie-phillips-is-a-terrorist/#comment-466 pommygranate Sun, 03 Sep 2006 10:11:32 +0000 http://thebadrash.com/?p=549#comment-466 Mate - This war exists but it’s not between Christians and Muslims If only this was not so. But it is. Philipps may be a touch melodramatic at times, and a little depressing if you read too much of her, but she's fundamentally right. Mate – This war exists but it’s not between Christians and Muslims

If only this was not so. But it is. Philipps may be a touch melodramatic at times, and a little depressing if you read too much of her, but she's fundamentally right.

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