Could someone please explain the tortured logic which allows some of you to equate Islamic terrorism...?

Well by calling the logic "tortured", you make it clear that this is not a thing that you are willing to consider a different point of view on. Instead, you want either a person to argue with, which points out a strange yet common desire to be angry and cause ourselves harm by polluting our minds with defilements, or a person to agree with you and make you feel good because you need that to feel good about yourself, you need other people to say "you are absolutely right, you know everything". Or maybe you want a little bit of both.

That being said, you bring up some good points. Extremist Christians (from here on called "fundies") and extremist Moslim/Muslims are very different indeed. But I would argue a different point of view, that they are not the same in creed or deed, but they are the same in terms of hatred and ignorance.

The Jihadists (I got the little red squiggly line under that word, how is it not an official word yet!?) are very violent and have killed many thousands of innocent people. But fundies are doing a more subtle form of violence, the violence against culture. They are doing an equally good job at destroying America's culture and way of life as are the Jihadists.

Killing people, and killing culture are one in the same, but those who do the more subtle killing of culture can get away because they don't seem to be violent. They are making us stupid because, they ARE us and they ARE stupid. This promotes the defilement of ignorance.

They are also promoting the other mental defilement of greed by promoting Capitalism, but I will not talk about that here as I see this as more of a religious/cultural question more then it is political/economic. The Jihadists are promoting the other major mental defilement, hatred (really it is fear, we are cowards, but we pretend to be all Clint Eastwood and disguise our fear as hatred). So, the Jihadists are promoting the worst mental defilement, fear/hatred.

And the Fundies are promoting the next worst defilements or greed and ignorance, which taken together, are equal to fear/hatred. That is my point of view, and why I see them as one and the same. And unlike the bleating sheep who believe the same thing, that they are the same, I back it up with thought.

So, you are right, until you really think about it in my opinion. The first part of my response may seem like I am being spiteful, but that is not how I want it to come across. I am sorry if it does.

I think you brought up an intriguing point. For the record, if it matters, on some of the things you have said..... I am not Catholic, but your culture is interesting, and you Catholics and us Buddhists tent to get along. About the last temptation of Christ I can say nothing, because I am not a Christian.

Well I can say that I think he was fully human and that he actually existed. I kinda think he may have been a Bodhisattva in another culture. The crusades were NOT religious believe it or not.

Like ALL wars, they were political/economic, but had to be justified on religious grounds. The "Holy Land" is ad the bridge of 3 continents, and a lot of $ was to be made in terms of trade in the old days. The Turks took it from the Eastern Orthodox Church, and the Eastern Church had not good enough solders to take it back, so the Emporor Alexius called upon, in the name of Christian brotherhood, the Western Orthodox Church (aka the Catholic Church) for help because the waster half of Europe was full of barbarians and Knights that could take back the holy land.

It was about the $, not God. Religion rarely starts wars, it only "justifies" them. McVeigh was also a White supremacist I have heard.

I am not Irish, but your opinion that there is not religious conflict but political conflict in Ireland would be consistent with my beliefs as stated above about the Crusades. Radicals only "justify" war on religious grounds, when there is actually no real reason to have religious conflict. I am personally "against" abortion, mainly because I am adopted, and I think adoption is perfectly natural (study other cultures, especial Polynesian ones before you argue with me on that), and being adopted beats being aborted.

But if you are going to have an abortion, I won't say you are "wrong". As a Buddhist, intention behind an action, not action in an of itself is what is important. If you don't think it is wrong, the Karma will be less bad.

Moslem/Muslim, tomato/tomawto. Gay marriage and Polygamy and Polyandry (multiple husbands) should be legal. There is no reason for that not to be the case.

When your right your right. Our President called for tolerance of the Muslims today in his speech. For ever liberals have demanded tolerance for all that they believe.

But for some reason our President and the liberals don't think right wing values and Christians deserve any sort of tolerance. I wish just once they would extend to us a little of the tolerance that they demand and even legislate we extend to them. The only purpose behind the Muslim victory Mosque is to antagonize Americans, and our President See's a need to support that @ James town Show exact times that happened in the name of Christ.

Give dates and names if you dare @ James again you failed to answer the question. Christians neither killed nor condoned the killing of Matthew Shepard. I think it's sick that liberals have used him as a martyr to accuse Christians of killing gays.

By saying this you are doing the same thing you accuse me of when I hold the Muslim community responsible for the terrorist acts committed by Al quida. Difference is, Shepard's killers are not Christians. But the terrorist are Absolutely Muslim.

Just how long are you going to hang Shepard's death on Christians with no proof? @ Fruit why do you do the same things you accuse others of? Are you that deep in denial?

@ James I think you just just exposed your own hypocrisy. Again Shepard's killers were not Christians, no where in Gods word does it say to kill gays. So they did not get the idea from Christians Terrorist are Muslims.

Every where in the Quran it says to kill those that oppose them. So the terrorist did get the idea to kill Americans from the Muslim faith. Try to find the logic here @ James OK I'llll blame all humans for both Shepard's death and terrorism, because God said our hearts are wicked and deceitful who can know it.

Since we are both humans too are you willing to take responsibility for the acts of terrorism and Shepard's death Also I see that you wont, can't or don't want to find the logic here but I clearly showed it to you and the difference between what happened in Wyoming on Oct 12 and what happened in NY on Sept 11.

I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.