It has come to my attention that my individual posts about various religious-associated violence in the world might appear to some to be taking some "political" position. My posts regarding violence in Iraq have been specifically cited as attempting to present an "anti-war" and "political" position.
This is not the case.
I believe these posts could just as easily be used to present a "pro-war" position because they could be used to demonize the "enemy" and highlight the threat in the same terms the Bush Administration presents it. Certainly, I would be posting an entirely different selection of articles if it were my intention to present an anti-war stance.
Regardless, all that I feel I was attempting to do was post stories that were related to religion on some level. I cannot help the fact that the majority of the major stories of the day have to do with violent, religious-associated conflict in various parts of the world (especially in Iraq). If posting links to these stories is somehow taking a "political" position, then the news itself is "political," since these are the same stories all the major news organizations are also featuring.
I have noticed that many of the other atheist/secular/humanist/freethinker news-sites tend to avoid these stories for the most part. From my perspective, this is a major omission. Why should some of the worst aspects of religious belief be ignored?
Nevertheless, I do understand how someone might misread my intentions (especially when religious belief might only play a debatable degree of relationship to a story).
To what degree does religion play a part when someone blows themself (and others) up in Iraq or some other place? To what extent does religion play a part in violence between Israel and the Palestinians? Providing a precise answer to questions like these is problematic. Are people responding to imperialism, oppression, personal threat, or some other reason that has nothing to do with religion? Is the fact that most of these conflicts occur between people of different religious beliefs not a factor, a partial factor, or is it the essential factor at the heart of the conflict? I tend to think it is the essential factor, although some might argue otherwise.
In order to take due consideration of those that might think otherwise, and especially those that might misunderstand, I have decided to attempt to "frame" these kinds of stories to better represent my intentions in posting them. To better accomplish this, I've also decided to attempt to consolidate these stories (when possible) into one post instead of posting them individually.
Here are some of the religious-related stories of violence since my last postings (I leave it to each individual to decide for themselves to what degree religion might play a part):
Sectarian Violence Rises in Baghdad
Bomb in Turkish capital kills six, injures 80
Nine U.S. soldiers killed in five Iraq attacks
Car bomber kills 27 at funeral in Iraq
Six more U.S. soldiers killed in Iraq
Eight U.S. troop deaths reported
Israeli jets strike Gaza targets
2 Palestinians killed, 4 Israelis injured in attack
Taliban says it launches new operation
