[SuchFriendsAreDangerous]

Originally Posted by jon boy

you have so much to learn, so much but that wont stop you running your keyboard off. sorry if your too idiotic to see that. from those stories which seem to sensationalize random acts by a minority you get the idea that europe is opposed to all mosques despite the fact that simply isnt true.

teach me all your wisdom, but can you manage to fit it in all of the 20 or so words you ever contribute to any thread here?

Originally Posted by Genteel Death

Why do you not concentrate on the larger amount of racism that exists in your own country, since it's bigger than Europe itself?

when don't I concentrate on American racism? (its safe to say I beat that dead horse beyond the grave)

with this thread I thought I would switch it up a bit

Originally Posted by Glice

The problem is that for every single instance of mosques being opposed in the UK, there's any number of cities we can point to that suggest otherwise. London, Manchester, Sheffield and Leeds are flush with mosques. Bristol doesn't have a very big Muslim population by comparison, but it does have ample mosques. There's plenty of instances of people opposing the building of new synagogues (most recently in High Barnet). I know of a church that failed to get planning permission. You can see these things as symptomatic of a broader 'Islamophobia' if you like, but the issue is much more complex than that.

I'd also add that Islam is in a very different position to, say, Hinduism or Sikhism. There's been a Beth Din in London for ages; there are motions in place to get Sharia courts in place on a similar basis. Properly Hindu cremations are still impossible, and Sikh burial rites similarly.

I'm not saying that my part of Europe doesn't have pockets of worrying attitudes towards Islam, but without a proper knowledge of the complexity of the issue, and looking at comparable religious groups, the criticism just seems a bit high-minded and fatuous.

Have you got any comment to make on the widespread spraypainting of swastikas on synagogues in (sharp intake of breath) areas with a high population of Jews and Muslims?

It is a complex issue indeed, but it does seem cut and dry. If European communities continue to resist mosque development, it will bite them in the ass, just as Jim Crowe and the series of Gentleman's Agreements in US History bit it in the ass...
Sure, there are mosques being built in plenty of European communities, but that is not the beef that Muslims have there, their beef is with the communities that won't let mosques be built, and whether its a mosque or a church or a synagogue to prohibit its building is negative and intolerant. With European Muslims, it can be out right dangerous, and the history of Islamic radicalism and its tendency for violence is evidence enough (after all, this issue is not merely religion vs religion, but in reality is a complex mesh of history, colonialism, bad-blood, disenfranchisement, politics etc etc), I thought it was self-evident but I guess I am just a silly american overstepping my boundaries.. I will back off and let y'all do y'all thing, time will reveal itself in the end.