I could not think of a title, but how about nerves?
OP - February 17, 2014, 01:29 PM
Nerves. Been lurking around for a while, like what I see, read Amoku's valiant introduction post and after having to indirectly use simplified logic to help a six-year-old child fend off a new-convert-to-Catholicism parent's attempts to "save" the child and push "facts" about the earth being 6000 years old, and believing in Jesus or going to Hell, this recent incident struck one nerve too many.
The straw that broke the camel's back, making me decide to introduce myself today, is Gatestone Institute's latest news articles about a translated letter describing terrible prison conditions and signed by prisoners in Ward 350 of Tehran's Evin Prison in Iran, as well as Reza Shahabi's deteriorating condition in the same ward.
Background: Never belonged to any religion, had to fend off christianity in my teens, and now, it's Islam. Grandmother was a taoist, freethinkers make up my family. There are four main religions in the country where I live, and this rojak (ie mish-mash resembling salad) means they compete with each other by having to be as peaceful as possible. Or to be more exact, for christianity and catholicism and Islam, as ignorant of their own religion as possible. Those I have met of these three religions don't seem to have actually read their books to make sense of it, relying on those who teach them. The teachers are the biggest culprits.
Experiencing university overseas was a huge advantage, given the research, dissection and argumentative skills I had to hone for my degree. These skills became very useful, especially when I was given an english copy of the Qur'an published by goodreads and distributed for free by an Islamic bookstore. Yes, someone is trying to lead me to "the true faith".
One thing led to another, and in my almost-finished research, I finally stumbled across this forum.
The greater a ridiculous claim, such as belief in a most gracious most merciful Allah or going to Jahannam regardless of good deeds and words, the more it inspires me to summarise an irrefutable argument to completely demolish the enemy. Ignorance, slavery and apathy are enemies. Wisdom is my religion. Or to be more exact, I quote Thomas Paine: "The world is my country, all mankind are my brethren, and to do good is my religion."
Seeing the stress of some ex-Muslims living in my country and being unable to tell their family because of fears and consequences (such as ostracisation from family and community), even though Islam is not dominant here? I want to help many. And in turn, I may need your help, in knowledge.
In short, a giant neurosis fused with an insecurity complex and zero sense of humour is not my idea of paradise. Besides, I like watching Jon Stewart's Daily Show, and his witty existence is not compatible with "Allahu Akbar!"
PS OT, but how do I post up videos in the metal music thread?
"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Hence it is sometimes necessary to give the beholder a black eye of context and proportion."
Topic: I could not think of a title, but how about nerves?