The recent sexual assault in Cologne of women on New Year’s Eve has shocked the nation. As many as 1000 men, allegedly set upon women and made them run a gauntlet as they were grabbed, their clothes ripped, and their bodies groped. Police sources and witnesses have said that many were refugees — triggering renewed objections over a spate of rapes and assaults of women in the country attributed to recent immigrants. To make matters worse for the government, newspapers are reporting that one man told police “I am Syrian. You have to treat me kindly. Mrs Merkel invited me.” The result has been a rising tide of criticism of Merkel for her open-door policy. Yet, that criticism may now be muted by a move by the government to crackdown on anti-immigration comments as a form of “hate speech.” As we discussed today with the effort to ban Donald Trump, free speech is being rolled back in Europe under hate crime and anti-discrimination laws as an alarming rate. It is particularly worrisome when the government is under attack on an issue like immigration and responds by prosecuting people for such criticism. News reports indicate that 18 of the 31 known suspects from Cologne were asylum seekers, including “nine Algerians, eight Moroccans, five Iranians, four Syrians, an Iraqi, a Serbian, an American and two German nationals.
We have previously discussed the alarming rollback on free speech rights in the West, particularly in France (here and here and here and here and here and here) and England ( here and here and here and here and here and here and here and here and here and here). Much of this trend is tied to the expansion of hate speech and non-discrimination laws. We have seen comedians targeted with such court orders under this expanding and worrisome trend. (here and here).
Prosecutors are charging people who are “inciting hatred” in Germany by speaking out against immigrants and their impact on German society. Prosecutors and judges are determining what criticism will be allowed and what will be treated as criminal. In the meantime, the government has reached a deal with Facebook, Google and Twitter to crackdown on Internet speech. It is an effort to create the artificial appearance of agreement and tolerance by denying free speech to critics.
While it is still not clear how many of the Cologne attackers were immigrants (as many as 22 have been identified as refugees), the incident has been a flashpoint as numerous stories of women and girls being harassed about their clothing or assaulted by immigrants. For example, a 26-year-old Berlin man’s home was raided by police, who confiscated his computer and phones after he had posted the image of a dead 3-year-old Syrian boy on a Turkish beach and wrote “We are not mourning, we are celebrating!” A disgusting comment and one that is worthy public condemnation. However, it is also an act of free speech.
Nevertheless, many citizens are celebrating the denial of their own free speech rights. So long as they disagree with the speakers, there appears little concern over the rising tide of censorship and criminalization of speech. People are now unsure what they can say about immigration, which is precisely the chilling effect that governments seek in such measure. The result is a forced silence . . . which is golden for governments like Merkel’s that do not like what they are hearing.
Then again, aren’t we a theocracy anyway?
Isn’t the bible our constitution…?
Activist judge anyone :
——————————–
METAIRIE, La. (AP) — Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia said Saturday the idea of religious neutrality is not grounded in the country’s constitutional traditions and that God has been good to the U.S. exactly because Americans honor him.
Scalia was speaking at a Catholic high school in the New Orleans suburb of Metairie, Louisiana. Scalia, who was appointed by President Ronald Reagan in 1986 is the court’s longest serving justice. He has consistently been one of the court’s more conservative members.
He told the audience at Archbishop Rummel High School that there is “no place” in the country’s constitutional traditions for the idea that the state must be neutral between religion and its absence.
“To tell you the truth there is no place for that in our constitutional tradition. Where did that come from?” he said. “To be sure, you can’t favor one denomination over another but can’t favor religion over non-religion?”
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He also said there is “nothing wrong” with the idea of presidents and others invoking God in speeches. He said God has been good to America because Americans have honored him.
randyjet
Since it is illegal and a crime in most Muslim countries to leave Islam, and atheism is a crime,
————————–
Let’s start here, randy, what is a muslim country? By constitution or majority population?
Either way challenges your claim that “most muslim countries…””
po, simple. BOTH!
Randy, according to that logic, the US is a Christian country?
So is Britain and most of Europe?
So is Uganda and Ethiopia?
po This is a simple question and i am amazed you cannot understand simple things. The US IS a nation made up of mainly Christians. It is NOT legally a Christian nation, while Britain IS both legally and mainly a Christian nation with the Queen as head of state AND church.
@Nick : crystal meth – lol! I was amazed that his keyboard is still functioning.
Good point, Randy…I have been trying to get a definition of Muslims for quite a bit now but seem to get no interest from the usually interested parties.
You’d think the first step of any discussion is framing the terms…
No one seems interested, OnlyChristianNaturalRights Olly, Ralph, Nick, bambam…oddly enough, those who yet love to talk about Muslims this Muslims that…:)
Osho’s interaction with Mohammedans
http://www.oshoworld.com/biography/innercontent.asp?FileName=biography5/05-27-moham.txt
Tom Nash; “The mass posioning in the Dalles Oregon in the early 1980s gave “”OSHO’S ASHRAM” kind of a bad name.”
This link is a summary of his history from 1931 to his death in 1990. The “other side of the story” is readily available but most people take the sound bites offered by main sewer media as all the education they need to form opinions and spread them far and wide, even though most of us know at least subconsciously that big media’s focus is to spread lies, fear, hate…negativity. That’s what gets the ratings…hmmm?
http://www.oshoworld.com/biography/briefbio.asp
“Osho is one of the best-known and most provocative spiritual teachers of our time. The Sunday Times has named him one of the “1,000 makers of the twentieth century”; the novelist Tom Robbins has called him “the most dangerous man since Jesus Christ”. Nearly two decades after his death in 1990, the influence of his teachings continues to grow, reaching seekers around the world.”
Living on Your Own Terms: What Is Real Rebellion?
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=sr_st_relevancerank?keywords=osho+books&rh=n%3A283155%2Ck%3Aosho+books&qid=1452453094&sort=relevancerank
Tom Nash “If I’m mixing up the holy man with the Rolls Royces from the 1980s who attempted to set up the theocracy in rural Oregon, I’ll stand corrected.”
Congratulations, you’ve been indoctrinated by main stream media sound bites and because of it, I’m guessing the odds are you won’t bother to take the time to study his words and reap benefit. Osho is spiritually and certainly politically incorrect. He used jokes to make points, to jolt people. He had a wonderful sense of humor. His focus is; sing, dance, celebrate, laugh, but don’t be stupid. A Theocracy? That would make him laugh out loud.
I was just waiting for the Rolls Royce comment.
http://www.oshoworld.com/biography/innercontent.asp?FileName=biography8/08-20-rolls.txt
“Why do you like your Rolls Royces so much?
I have tried all kinds of cars; and even Rolls Royce has many types and I have tried them too. Their best is the Corniche, but it doesn’t suit me. It is a question of my back. I need a certain kind of chair—I use only this chair. It has been made by my sannyasins exactly to give support to my back, because doctors have said that they cannot do anything more.
Experts from England were called to India. They tried hard, and they said, “It is impossible. You will have to live with it.” It was just a coincidence that one of the models of Rolls Royce, Silver Spur, suited me. The driver’s seat in that car fits perfectly, gives me no trouble. Naturally, my people love….
They don’t belong to me, those cars—nothing belongs to me. I am the poorest man in the whole world, living the richest life possible. My people love me; they want to do something for me. All those cars belong to the commune. They have made them available to me for one hour each day. I don’t know which car they are bringing, but one thing is certain, that I can be comfortable only in a Silver Spur. And they love me so much that they are trying to have three hundred and sixty-five Rolls Royces, one for every day. And I say, “Why not? A great idea!”…
They have arranged ninety Rolls Royces, and I know they will be able to manage three hundred and sixty-five.
People are very much interested in your Rolls Royces. What do You want to prove with this, so many cars and so much luxury around You?
Why are people concerned? Then certainly they need it; then more Rolls Royces will be here. Until they stop asking me, more and more Rolls Royces are going to be here. Now it has to be seen that it is a challenge: the day nobody asks me about Rolls Royces, they will not be coming.”
It never hurts to hear the other side of the story….hmmmm?
UPDATE*
Cologne police now say the number of reported attacks has risen to 516, including 40% relating to sexual assault.
Logic alone would place the number of suspects in the thousands.
“It would be interesting to compare all this conversion to Islam with the rate of conversion to atheism and/or agnosticism, or more more tellingly, those that simply don’t give a sh*t.”
isaac,
Oh, I think the rise of “don’t give a sh*t” will certainly explain the simultaneous rise of our secular institutions of government willingness to accommodate that apathy. As for being a “rational” departure from religion, that theory has yet to bear any fruit. At least as is reflected in the degeneracy of our culture and the rise of the administrative state.
There is a lot of talk about the rate of conversion to Islam throughout the world. People are adherents of this or that religion because they are born to it or because they need to believe in some god or gods and monotheism is simpler and easier to keep track. It would be interesting to see how many of these converts to Islam are coming from the other two main monotheistic religions: Christianity and Judaism and how many are simply coming out of the chaos of polytheistic religions or the forced absence of religion as is found in places like China. Breeding like rabbits might also be a factor.
Throughout the past century or two it would seem to me that the greatest conversion is to be found in those that are putting religion and religious beliefs behind rational thought and secular contexts. It would be interesting to compare all this conversion to Islam with the rate of conversion to atheism and/or agnosticism, or more more tellingly, those that simply don’t give a sh*t.
Since it is illegal and a crime in most Muslim countries to leave Islam, and atheism is a crime, I would say that the figures for Islam are more than likely inflated. So if an atheist is born into Islam, he will be counted as Muslim no matter what. The same holds true for those who convert from Islam to Christianity or some other non-Islamic religion. Then there is the problem that stats do not take into account all the various sects of Islam, so that in some countries such as Saudi Arabia, they would not count Shias as being Muslim.
Here is a partial answer, Isaac.
———————
http://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2015/12/25/460797744/a-religious-forecast-for-2050-atheism-is-down-islam-is-rising
By the end of the century, Muslims could outnumber Christians for the first time in history, according to a report released by the Pew Research Center.
“Another way of thinking about it is Christianity had a seven-century head-start on Islam, and Islam is finally catching up,” says Alan Cooperman, the director of religion research at Pew.
Christianity is currently the world’s largest religion, making up a third of the world’s population with 2.2 billion adherents. Pew research shows that Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world. The religious group will make up 30 percent of the world’s population by 2050, compared to just 23 percent of the population in 2010. That means the number of Muslims in the world will nearly equal the number of Christians by 2050.
If Islam’s growth spurt continues, Pew data shows, Muslims could outnumber Christians soon after the year 2070.
That’s not to say that the total number of Christians is decreasing; Christianity’s growth rate is just not as fast as Islam’s. While the number of Christians will increase from about 2.1 billion to 2.9 billion by 2050, Muslims will jump from 1.6 billion to 2.8 billion.
This growth has to do with the relatively young age of the Muslim population as well as high fertility rates. Other religious groups have aging populations. Among Buddhists, for example, half of adherents are older than 30 and the average birth rate is 1.6 children. By contrast, in 2010, a third of the Muslim population was under 15. What’s more, each Muslim woman has an average of 3.1 children, while the average for Christian women is 2.7.
The Pew research revealed two other interesting shifts in world religious perspectives, Cooperman says.
Atheists, agnostics and those who do not affiliate with religion will make up a smaller percentage of the world’s total population by 2050 — even though the group is growing in the U.S. and Europe. The decline is primarily because those who are unaffiliated religiously have low fertility rates, with women bearing an average of 1.7 children in their lifetime.
Between now and 2050, the hub of Christianity will also shift — from Europe to sub-Saharan Africa. As of 2010, the majority of the Christian population — 25.5 percent — lived in Europe, but sub-Saharan Africa will become home to nearly 40 percent of the world’s Christians by 2050. Fertility rates are also behind this change. Christians living in sub-Saharan African have the highest fertility rates among Christians worldwide: Each woman has, on average, 4.4 children.
Cooperman emphasizes that a lot could change between now and 2050.
“We’re not saying that this will happen; it’s if current patterns and trends continue,” Cooperman says. “We do not know what’s going to happen in the future. There could be war, revolution, famine, disease. These are things no one can predict and that could change the nu
Po,
You’ve put up a wonderful defense of your religion. You cite the growing number of people converting to Islam. At what point should a convert be expected to understand Islam is for the spiritual life and therefore subordinate to secular law? How in fact do those “qualified” to teach Islam to their followers ensure Muslims practicing their religion in countries governed by secular law stay true to their faith AND keep the secular law as the supreme law of the land?
Two suspects have now been arrested in Koeln. One is from Morocco; the other is from Tunisia. The Moroccan was known to the police as a pickpocket. Inference: they are not recent immigrants to Germany but have been in that country or in the EU before the big stream of Syrian refugees arrived. In Europe Moroccans are known to be major foreign troublemakers.
If that trend continues for the remainder of the 18 Muslim suspects then it might become clear that this vile behavior was done by a bunch of hoodlums that have been in Germany for many years. Yes, that includes Germans.
Gee, I didn’t think Muslims were allowed to do crystal meth.
Islam is indeed growing. Like any cancer does, left alone to do so.
——————-
A professor of sociology is lecturing about trends regarding the decline of religion in the world, and is about to conclude before taking questions. “By my calculations, I estimate that religion will virtually disappear from the civilized world by the year 2155,” the professor says. “These may be distressing conclusions for many, but we must be realistic about where things are headed and the consequences of such developments for civilization,” the professor summarizes. “Questions?”
A young man in the back of the lecture hall raises his hand.
The professor acknowledges him. “Yes, Abdul — What’s your question?”
“But professor, how can you say that religion will virtually disappear in the world? Islam is the fastest growing religion today its adherents represent 25% of the population, and even faster growth is being projected into the decades to come,” Abdul explains.
“Yes, Abdul, that’s true, but I was referring strictly to the civilized world.”
The Mustard Seed: The Revolutionary Teachings of Jesus
http://www.amazon.com/The-Mustard-Seed-Revolutionary-Teachings-ebook/dp/B0039M97O6/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top?ie=UTF8
“Osho”, AKA Rajneesh, probably made a bigger impression on Antelope Oregon than elsewhere.
If I’m mixing up the holy man with the Rolls Royces from the 1980s who attempted to set up the theocracy in rural Oregon, I’ll stand corrected.
The mass posioning in the Dalles Oregon in the early 1980s gave “”OSHO’S ASHRAM” kind of a bad name.
Tom Nash “Hdegard. ….If you feel that the New Testament “does not accurately reflect Jesus’ teachings” , then what source(s) DO you recommend?”
I’m in the process of researching that very subject. I’ve read from reliable sources that the Brotherhood of the Essenes have preserved Jesus’ original teachings. Edgar Cayce mentions them here:
Edgar Cayce Predictions & Cosolargy
http://cosolargy.org/edgar-cayce-predictions-cosolargy/
There are great spiritual works that I feel reflect Christ Consciousness such as The Book of Mirdad
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1907486402?*Version*=1&*entries*=0
Also in another comment….
In addition to the “Gnostic gospels” cited above, there are probably missing interviews and press conferences that Jesus gave to correct misconcetions/ misrepresentations in the New Testament.
As I correctly anticipated, po, the Islamonazi adherent, is only capable of gabbling blatherskite. He cannot explain the failure of practitioners of Islam to do anything of long-term benefit for humanity. Thus, he obsessively must leave a copious trail of verbal defecation droppings to smell up this website.
po — like all Islamopanders and Islamonazis –cannot explain why no Muslim has won a Nobel Prize in the fields of science, medicine, or economics, even though they represent more than 25% of the world’s population and there are quite a few members of the cult that are billionaires and multimillionaires who could easily fund educational, cultural, and scientific endeavors if they were not so inclined to spend their money on funding Islamoterrorism worldwide.
But like all Islamopanders and Islamonazis, in his dark heart he knows the truth: the cult of Islam and civilization are simply incompatible. Of course, such prevaricators like po aren’t ever going to fess up to the truth. Deception is as dear to them as breathing.
Ralph, I left up to scholars and learned people, including rabbis and priests to reveal your ignorance and rabid hatred.
It is sufficient that every day, more and more people embrace that cult and find happiness in it.
1400 years old and growing every day…whites, blacks, asians, native Americans, Hispanics, men, women, young and old…
Millions of enemies have come and gone, billions of words were written attacking it, by people MUCH smarter than you, all of them gone, all of Islam still around, growing. and growing, and growing… 🙂
You’ll be gone too, and others will come and go…and still…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L-9DwDzCaU0
Additionally, we must have forgotten about this:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/70000-clerics-issue-fatwa-against-terrorism-15-lakh-Muslims-support-it/articleshow/50100656.cms
and then this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6tN2BAt378
http://www.lettertobaghdadi.com/
1- It is forbidden in Islam to issue fatwas without all the necessary learning requirements. Even
then fatwas must follow Islamic legal theory as defined in the Classical texts. It is also
forbidden to cite a portion of a verse from the Qur’an—or part of a verse—to derive a ruling
without looking at everything that the Qur’an and Hadith teach related to that matter. In other
words, there are strict subjective and objective prerequisites for fatwas, and one cannot ‘cherrypick’
Qur’anic verses for legal arguments without considering the entire Qur’an and Hadith.
2- It is forbidden in Islam to issue legal rulings about anything without mastery of the Arabic
language.
3- It is forbidden in Islam to oversimplify Shari’ah matters and ignore established Islamic
sciences.
4- It is permissible in Islam [for scholars] to differ on any matter, except those fundamentals of
religion that all Muslims must know.
5- It is forbidden in Islam to ignore the reality of contemporary times when deriving legal rulings.
6- It is forbidden in Islam to kill the innocent.
7- It is forbidden in Islam to kill emissaries, ambassadors, and diplomats; hence it is forbidden to
kill journalists and aid workers.
8- Jihad in Islam is defensive war. It is not permissible without the right cause, the right purpose
and without the right rules of conduct.
9- It is forbidden in Islam to declare people non-Muslim unless he (or she) openly declares
disbelief.
10- It is forbidden in Islam to harm or mistreat—in any way—Christians or any ‘People of the
Scripture’.
11- It is obligatory to consider Yazidis as People of the Scripture.
12- The re-introduction of slavery is forbidden in Islam. It was abolished by universal consensus.
13- It is forbidden in Islam to force people to convert.
14- It is forbidden in Islam to deny women their rights.
15- It is forbidden in Islam to deny children their rights.
16- It is forbidden in Islam to enact legal punishments (hudud) without following the correct
procedures that ensure justice and mercy.
17- It is forbidden in Islam to torture people.
18- It is forbidden in Islam to disfigure the dead.
19- It is forbidden in Islam to attribute evil acts to God .
20- It is forbidden in Islam to destroy the graves and shrines of Prophets and Companions.
21- Armed insurrection is forbidden in Islam for any reason other than clear disbelief by the ruler
and not allowing people to pray.
22- It is forbidden in Islam to declare a caliphate without consensus from all Muslims.
23- Loyalty to one’s nation is permissible in Islam.
24- After the death of the Prophet , Islam does not require anyone to emigrate anywhere.
And then I am gonna recruit a Jewish woman scholar to testify on behalf of Islam better than I could.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ab6fdoCkZTA
And then this rabbi calling Muslims blessed.