Re: Why Iranians Take Hostages
[colour=blue]Islam does have a militant history that was spread with the sword and rapidly displaced much of the declining Roman Empire. Constantine did adopt Christianity 300 years earlier + or - which was never in a position to be spead with the sword in the early years, (30 AD on up). It was spead with the "Gospel", (good news) or words, and many of the early speaders of the 'news' were fed to exotic animals in the Coliseum, or crucified prior to Constantine's conversion. Islam did establish a far superior society in terms of most measures of ackomplishment, (Medicine Science, Astronomy etc) while Christianity withered after the fall of Rome and Christians and Western society stagnated during the many times brutal and terrible "dark ages". The RC Church followed lots of questionable actions, to include "Crusades" which were an attempt to take back areas the Muslims had conquered earlier, (very brutal). Science was held back by the Church, while Islamic society surged ahead on all fronts. The Spanish were very brutal during the inquisition, turning back Islam from the Iberian peninsula, and were also very brutal when they conquered the "New World". Fortunately, Martin Luther stood up to the Church and distributed his German bible to the masses with the newly invented printing press. The Reformation of that period is where these two great "monotheistic religons" changed directions. It was brutal, but within 300 years slavery was abolished in the West, and the Muslim religon stagnated and sank from the high point 500 years ago. Islamic culture has not led the world in Science health care or other areas for nearly 500 years. The Religon has not "modernized" as Christianity has. So when some one says "all religon is bad", there is truth to those words over the last 1500 years. That was then: this is now. Christianity has given us the USA, and modern Western Europe. The inlightened Europeans have been moving away from Christianity, and allowing Muslims to move there to do the labor they can't seem to produce children to grow up and do. Many radical Muslims dwell in the past and seem to be very jealous of the Western progress. Because the radicals use the words of Muhammad and his seventh century tactics, and the mellower majority of Muslims either lack courage to modernize or resist the radicals we have the problems we have today. The only long lived successfull Muslim Country is Turkey, the center of power for many centuries as well as the Ottoman Empire. Could Iraq be another potential foothold? If you were from Mars you would think the odds were fairly good. Resources, educated population, help from a Superpower etc. That all said, some of the people in power in the US do not want to try to close the deal. Is it worth the effort we used in Korea? YES. Please tell the Democrats. Iran. A Democracy? Sure that same as the USSR was. Joe won the 'lections don't ya know? Can the promissing Persian population overturn their government? Not likely, but unknown. The Persians were great allies of ours until the worst President in American History aranged for the Aytolla to start the War we are in now, (1979). Sorry for the rant. It really can work in Iraq. We must stop Iran from getting Nukes which is the major problem, as the Democrats do not have any rational plan other then to gain total power, and drive us into the ground. This is all off the top of my head so tear me down if you must. JR[/colour]
