Before I start let just say that I am not religious at all and neither do I follow one political ideology. I simply do and think about what is right and what is wrong.

Quote Originally Posted by Sly
The prime motivation behind these bomb attacks is religion.
I disagree. This is the argument put forward by the media and is incorrect. And it is also the reason given for "not being able to negotiate with these people". Because as we all know arguing over faith is nearly always a no win situation. The reality is that religion is used as a recruitment tool, to back political motives. This has been the case always.

The reasons that the terrorists began this campaign has been stated by Bin Laden himself and more recently by someone who claims to be Bin Laden's deputy ( Ayman al-Zawahri ) . Both men have said the same thing....

  • * Withdraw from our land
    * Stop stealing our oil and wealth
    * Stop supporting corrupt rulers ( they are talking about Israel here ).


Why do the media or politicians never dwell on these points. Last time I checked, the US in particular, violates the very things that Bin Laden etc are complaining about.

So I agree WILL that the media is just there to sell the viewpoint of their owners who have close affiliations with certain political groups.. If the owners want public opinion to go one way, well then that is what comes out of the mouths of the reporters.

The points mentioned above are what should be used to begin negotiations. I am not saying give in, I am saying negotiate.
But every politician says "Terrorists cannot be negotiated with". This is total rubbish, throughout history in the end, after many lives have been lost, governments always, and I mean always, negotiate. Ireland, South Africa, India ( Ghandi was considered a terrorist in his day ) to name a few, google for a few more and you will see that they do.

All I am saying is instead of waiting 20 years to negotiate, lets skip all the killing of innocents and start negotiating NOW, before more blood is spilled!

Whether real or not, people in the Middle East have a perception of INJUSTICE, mainly due to double standards. For example, why is Israel allowed to have an illegal nuclear program, but Iran is not? Why doesn't the US hassle them about developing nuclear capabilities. Don't give me the self defence argument, because in that case very country in the world should have nukes to defend themselves with, not just a select few.

Since they ( the middle east ) feel that injustices are being commited, and there does not seem a peaceful way to resolve the injustice, they choose violence. The clerics use this perceived injustices to recruit the suicide bombers. Address the injustice in some way, so that people see that something is being done. This will reduce their feelings of helplessness.

Quote Originally Posted by Sly
They believe that killing themselves for their religion is a higher honour than living. How do you plan to "fix" that?
As I mentioned earlier, religion is a recruiitment tool. You need to remove their perception of injustices, and replace that with a sense of justice. With a sense of justice, people will be less likely to be drawn into the religious fervour. That is how you "fix" it.

Quote Originally Posted by Sly
Religion is a powerful motive that has been used for many centuries as justification for killing by almost every religion.
I totally agree, also one of the reasons why I refuse to follow any religion what so ever.

And my earliar quote address this...
Quote Originally Posted by savage
Give someone a reason to live and they will choose life. Remove any reason for living, then who knows how they will choose to die.
Quote Originally Posted by WILL
Well this is hardly a fair statement. Mr. Bush doesn't run England. Are you saying that one should not do the right thing because someone else might do something bad?
I think it is a very fair statement. I and 2 million other people in the UK marched against the invasion and subsequent occupation of Iraq. Millions of others protested around the world, but to no avail. We all stated it would become a quagmire and that it was the wrong thing to do, but Bush and Blair, with what ever motives ( and I don't mean the WMD ones ) they had, decided to go ahead. I can hardly blame myself, as I marched/protested for what I believed was right. If the UK had not gone to Iraq and supported the US, which was the wrong thing to do to begin with, the likelihood of bombs going off in London would be zilch.

PS. I hope no one thinks I am attacking them personally, I respect everyone on this forum, even though I may not agree with things that are said. For me, things said in this thread remain in this thread and will not change my conversations with you via chat, email or other forums posts.