Blog #19

Chapter 23 (pp.1155-1171)

All the way back as far as history is recorded it seems as though religion and politics should not be mixed. This is probably the way the old saying:  don’t discuss religion and politics with people in a social setting came from. It is amazing to me how many countries and different religious affiliations thought their way was the only way and that everyone else was wrong. There were even people that belonged to a religion who broke away from their main affiliation, thinking they would have their own section of their Church that would be even better than what they were already practicing.  A few statements in this chapter really weighed on my mind as I read and reread them. In my opinion religion and politics should be two totally different and separate entities.  Government should be for ALL people.  People themselves can choose the religion of their liking, not as the one Islamic leaders stated, “to establish the Rule of God  in our own country first to make the word of God supreme and eliminate other political leaders and replace them with Islamic Order.”  What kind of religion speaks of providing great things for “their own people” and killing others?  Osama bin Laden created al-Queda and Americans were initially on the same side, both opposing the Soviet Union expanding into Afghanistan. However Osama bin Laden got irritated that his government was allowing the U.S. troops in Islam’s holy land after the war against Iraq.  He left with other al-Queda leaders and went to Afghanistan . Plans of the World Trade Center bombing as well as attacks on others were in the making. How can anyone think that any God would listen to what Osama bin Laden said after they passed down “the ruling to kill the Americans and their allies, civilians and military—is an individual duty for every Muslim who can do it in any country to which it is possible to do it, in order to liberate the al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem and the holy mosque from their grip, and in order for their armies to move out of all the lands of Islam, defeated and unable to threaten any Muslim.. This was told to be especially important because according to al-Queda any western modernism, imperialism or American led economic globalization was what the World Trade Center represented. How ironic that al-Queda was thought of to be a modern and globalization organization as well!  The very notion that a Muslim that may disagree with another Muslim was then deemed to be a non-Muslim; simply unbelievable.  This group did not even trust their own.  At least Turkey had a semi-refreshing idea (although still combining politics with religion) they were at least willing to try having their government faith-based but did not limit it to just their faith. There was a revelation.

 Back to 1890 when it was recorded that global industry had grown immensely, was a result of the population multiplying so quickly over periods of time. The environmental changes, numerous plants and animals endangered to become extinct, many more crops needed to be grown, dramatic numbers for erosion, building and more. The spread of modern industry created significant air pollution as well as other problems with hydroelectricity, natural gas and nuclear power added throughout the years and being used at higher and higher rates.  One of the situations created over time has been global warming and with technology being updated and new information being available, this is one area we hear about on a daily basis.