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I too believe we will probably find out soon that the perpetrator was under surveillance at some time, which is normally the case in these instances. That's what is most troubling to learn. In nearly every instance of these kind of attacks, they were on the radar.
After the attack all the news comes out so quickly about them (law enforcement is able to draw the links after the attack, but not before). That's what must improve if these attacks are to be stopped.
As with many and as someopne who works "in town" I am angry and will resist going into full rant mode (for the moment) but surely, I cant be the only one who sees the irony when acts of terror made in tribute to one invisible sky fairy are met by prayers to other invisible sky fairies (our Queen and PM are amongst those who have appealed to their own sky fairies). Its as though we are helpless children with no real control over our destiny and lives, looking up to a grown up who may, if they hear our pleas, do something about it.
If we think a God is going to solve these issues, we will be waiting a long time. Every terror attack we have witnessed has been over seen by a God who clearly did not think think it was worth getting involved, including the horrible events of yesterday.
We have to have the will to realise that we are not children and we have to sort these issues out on our own. Until we reach that point of realisation, attacks like these will just keep coming.
Excellent post Sir.
What happens if those who practice religion don't want to have their faith banned? How is the law then enforced?
Does this lead onto the criminalisation of other 'undesirable' activities? If so, who gets to rule on what is and isn't acceptable?
Rather than demonise whole sections of society, would it not be better to harness the moderates (of whom the overwhelming majority are) and have them engage in the fight against the extremists?
Remember, it is one of the primary objectives of any terrorist organisation to divide the society which it seeks to attack.
So practically speaking, in order to stop religiously motivated attacks, one must marginalize the hate ideology. A half way solution perhaps is to ban or outlaw anything that preaches violence (or can be taken to mean that) in religious text, without stopping worship. That is easier to defend even if it's just as difficult to enforce. At least then, those who espouse violence will be more readily marginalized even within their own religious communities.
An eye for an eye? If taken literally (which is where the problem comes), that is scary stuff. I don't subscribe to it.
It's a fact of our life at present.
Did religion exist before humans? I dont think so. If all humans died and Earth was inhabited by other species, would religion be a fact of life?
No.
Is there a significant chunk of the global population for which religion plays no part in their lives? yes. Is this chunk expanding as a percentage? Yes
Is it possible to imagine the human species dumping religion? Yes
It's just a matter of time before we "wake up and small the coffee" but the quicker we get there, the fewer that will die on the journey.And debates such as these are a small but essential part of the coffee smelling process.
It is a part of the human condition (for a large portion of the population) to have 'faith' in something, which by definition implies something without necessary evidentiary basis.
So if we want to solve today's problems, we will need another solution.
Thanks.
Bollards lining the pavement would prevent a car getting on the pavement of Westminster Bridge.
Faith on it's own is fine. Marriage is a form of faith. Belief in one's own abilities is a form of faith. Voting for a politcal party is a form of faith. Crossing the road at a zebra crossing etc etc. We show faith in other humans all the time and this is essential in forming social cohesion and trust. These are great things.
But faith in an all powerful sky fairy who is always right and will reward you with eternal life in heaven. Thats when it gets scary. It's not the faith bit...it's the God bit.
I would probably take issue with that. A new species would ask the same questions we homo sapiens asked. And the answers would probably be about the existence of a being greater than themselves.
Humans have evolved so well because we have the ability to latch on to something that doesn't really exist, and follow it, or believe in it or accept it, to the determent of all other species.
We on the whole respect other people's boundaries (non existant lines), their cultures (wearing different clothes and putting more spice in their foods), their royalty (just people really), and their religions ( unproven belief that we go somewhere after we die).
None of it makes sense, but that's what humans do.
When people break these accepted fundamental beliefs we get something like what happened yesterday. But, these people still try to justify it by claiming they are motivated by their religious beliefs.
A police spokesman said the vehicle had French number plates and was driven "at high speed" into the Meir, Antwerp's main shopping street.
"A man in camouflage was taken away," the spokesman said in a televised news conference in Antwerp.
There have been no reports of injuries.
The police lifting of suspects in Birmingham points to that theory too.
Or it has just triggered every fanatic out there to have a go.
Problem solved then
It's best to take security measures.
A man has been arrested in the north Belgian city of Antwerp on suspicion of driving at a crowd.
The vehicle, bearing French number plates, was driven "at high speed" towards Antwerp's main shopping street. There were no reports of injuries.
The suspect, a man of north African origin, was taken away, Antwerp police chief Serge Muyters said.
Belgium's Prime Minister Charles Michel praised the city's authorities for doing an "outstanding job".
The attack comes a day after a car was driven at high-speed along London's Westminster Bridge, resulting in the deaths of four people - including the driver - and injuring 40.
It was also the day Belgium marked the first anniversary of the twin bomb attacks in Brussels, that killed 32 people.
Done, @barryt007! :-)
I don't advocate banning religion; I would if it were possible but of course it isn't. That said, we can start by leaving "God bless (e.g. America)" and such nonsense out of official political communication. We can start by leaving biblical "truth" out of biology class. We can start by not pampering religious zealots so darn much. "Sorry, can't come to work, it's so-and-so, you know, a tradition that goes back 800 years." "Sorry, sir, I can't come to school. I have to stay up all night and say my prayers." Uhu, any real reason, perhaps?
Regarding my post from last page:
I never said religion = terrorism. I said, and still mean, that every generation comes with a few fundamentalists--I will openly admit they are a minority--who can cause severe damage to people of good intentions. No matter how good the intentions of their parents, no matter how nice and kind and 'clear-minded' their brothers and sisters are, if young so-and-so has a slightly different interpretation of the holy books, he can grow up to become the next Osama Bin Laden.
No, I never said that by abolishing religion, we'd get rid of all evil. However, we don't have to pretend that the crusades, the Salem Witch trials, the inquisition, the clerical exploitation of the poor, the oppression of women, the "secret" support for slavery, 9/11, ... never happened. True, Nazis, Communists, ... none of them had a specifically religious agenda, so of course others can commit atrocities too. But many more crimes have been committed in the name of the almighty, loving god, than in the name of the Devil, whom resides in all of us according to some, because we don't enslave our women but respect them instead, because we have pre-marital sex, because we eat whatever the hell we want and because we don't resort to supernatural forces when trying to explain the universe, but to empirical research instead. For someone so diabolical and sinful and bad, I have a surprisingly large love for mankind. Except for those who judge me on the basis of a book that was never even once submitted to thorough revisions in the past hundreds of years, no matter what the social, demographical, economic, political, scientific, … changes our society has gone through. Is it a surprise then that those books invite some—again, some, but some are enough—to go Medieval on us, even in this day and age?
Naturally, religion itself isn't necessarily the culprit here, but those (ab)using it to get their drones to do their dirty work for them. And of course other such tools exist. Patriotism, cultural pride, the need to eat, ... The abuse of religion is but one of many evils, but it's real no matter what and the presence of other forms of leverage doesn’t absolve it. And religion is a fairly easy tool. Those who are desperate and of limited education, need very little persuasion after all.
Thanks DD me old pal !