Thursday, January 22, 2015

R.E.S.P.E.C.T.

"Those who are not Muslims, we respect their belief and if it's our belief, you have to respect our belief," he said. "That's all we want. Nothing more, nothing less."
Wait, what?  You respect our beliefs?  Since when?

Attention all Muslims.  It is our belief that every man is free and that the right to free speech is a part of being free.  If you don't like someone's speech, feel free to not do business with them, feel free to not socialize with them, feel free to cross the street when you see them coming.  Killing them, however, is not counted as respect.

Oh, and by the way, we don't have to respect your beliefs.  We will tolerate them (right up to the point where you stone a woman to death for committing adultery or pronounce a death sentence on someone because they decide not to believe in your religion any more) but we don't have to respect you at all.

You don't have to respect our beliefs either, come to think of it.  You can think we are all horrible people who are going to hell in some afterlife, but if you want to live in our countries then you get to accept that it isn't up to you to decide.  You don't get to make that decision for us.  You don't get to decide to put us to death because we don't believe in your religion.  You don't get to enslave us because we don't believe.  We will not be second class citizens in our own countries.  Here it is called freedom of religion and freedom of speech.  We believe that you can live your life but you don't get to impose it on the rest of us.

So if all you want is a little respect, how about vocally condemning Islamic suicide bombers?  How about marching in the streets to protest Islamic terrorists?  How about standing up and saying that it is wrong for Muslims to incite violence against non-Muslims?  How about standing up and calling for the Islamic countries around the world to implement freedom of religion?  How about standing up and calling for and end to fatwah and violent jihad?  How about rejecting that part of the Koran that says that it is OK for you to lie to a non-Muslim?

When you do, I might consider respecting your religion.  In the meantime I will tolerate your right to practice your religion but respect?  I think you are asking a bit much.

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