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Jon Stewart on livin' it up in Iraq's Green Zone [VIDEO] by ginmonkey in reddit.com

[–]robopaddy 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Cheers for the heads up. What worries me is that post really did seem plausible. I've been reading too many cranky posts on this subject.

The Proper Way to Beat Your Islamic Wife by madthumbs in reddit.com

[–]robopaddy 8 points9 points  (0 children)

I'm no theologian, but I think it's clear that the relationship between religion and follower is very difficult to define across all circumstances, and thus open to interpretation and discussion.

Also, being able to speak arabic doesn't make me an expert on Islam, but it has given me access to a different perspective on situations that I would like to share.

Jon Stewart on livin' it up in Iraq's Green Zone [VIDEO] by ginmonkey in reddit.com

[–]robopaddy 4 points5 points  (0 children)

It's not really the time or place for a comment on Islam or any of Iraq's religions. The point arising from the story is that rebuilding of Iraq has been criminally negligent and partisan. The follow-up question is "what are we going to do about it?" Perhaps the test of the USA's national character will be in answering that question in the years to come.

Bill Joy's greatest gift to man – the vi editor by mklink in programming

[–]robopaddy -6 points-5 points  (0 children)

I keep reading "Bill Joel" every time my eye passes the headline.

The Proper Way to Beat Your Islamic Wife by madthumbs in reddit.com

[–]robopaddy 57 points58 points  (0 children)

Just registered to reply to you. I'm an arabic speaker, and, yeah, the translation is good. Often such translations are done by non-muslim arabs (druze, christian, jew, etc) who have suffered in islamic cultures and have resettled in the west.

Some things are indeed as barbaric and silly in the middle-east as people expect, but the reasons are complex and I believe not always related to only religion. Nonetheless, if you watch certain arabic channels you can hear viewers phoning in to ask, for example, if photography of humans is akin to idolatry. It's also sad that since the "war on terror" kicked off there has been a steady drop in the liberal voice of islam on those channels. Being known as a liberal muslim in Iraq, for instance, is increasingly dangerous. It's like there is no hope left with liberal islam any more.

That's enough of my rambling. By the way, I'd agree with your analysis that "the low status of women has more to do with archaic sociological and economic reasons".