UAE Clerics' Fatwa Forbids Muslims From Traveling To Mars

PolygamousRanchKid writes "The Khaleej Times of Dubai reports that a fatwa committee has forbidden Muslims from taking a one-way trip to the Red Planet. At the moment, there is no technology available that would allow for a return trip from Mars, so it is truly a one-way ticket for the colonists, who may also become reality TV stars in the process. The committee of the General Authority of Islamic Affairs and Endowment in the United Arab Emirates that issued the fatwa against such a journey doesn't have anything against space exploration, Elon Musk's Mars visions, or anything like that. Rather, the religious leaders argue that making the trip would be tantamount to committing suicide, which all religions tend to frown upon."

Comments

Well for once I agree with religious crazies

[Rosco P. Coltrane]

You don't want to go to Mars? Please by all means, keep your bullshit on Earth and let us evolved human beings make a fresh new life on a fresh new planet without you!

Re: Well for once I agree with religious crazies

[AuMatar]

Lack of food, oxygen, and liquid water. Maybe it will be possible someday, but not now. This fatwa was discussing doing it now, possibly as part of the one way mission to mars that was discussed, which was a complete suicide mission.

Re: Well for once I agree with religious crazies

[JustOK]

Life is a suicide mission

Re: Well for once I agree with religious crazies

[CastrTroy]

I think the current plans for sending people to mars have no such plans though. They want to send people with no plans of sending any supplies and no plans of sending the necessary life support systems in the first place. Sending a resupply mission would be a major project, and lead times of 6 months to 2 years depending on orbits can make things difficult. With colonization they may had a high chance of death, but they were travelling places with plenty of fresh air, water, and food. Most of the deaths were due to either disease or disagreements with the locals. Many died of malnutrition. But they still had the intentions of living, those who are planning the current Mars trip have no such intentions.

Let it begin!

[MPAB]

Cue witty jokes about blowing oneself up not counting as suicide.

But they should also forbid being born, as everyone that does will die eventually.

@Al Kai Da - RTFF - Read the fucking ..

[burni2]

.. Fatwa

Stop blasting yourself into pieces, it's forbidden,
and no your chance to survive is below the mars mission.

But... but...

[Maritz]

What if there's a school on Mars that has a girl in it? It's not going to blow itself up now, is it?!?! More short-sightedness from the 'clerics'.

Re:"suicide, which all religions frown upon"

[abies]

But the fact that 99.9% of Muslims oppose terrorism doesn't seem to be swaying the terrorists.

Quotation needed. I think that you are considerably underestimating amount of 'angry Muslims' in the world.
If you would say 99.9% of Muslims aren't _actively_ involved in terrorism - sure. But oppose?

Because, again, religions aren't hive minds. Members don't really have much influence over each other, and they have even less influence over people who have already proven themselves willing to kill.

Now, this is pure BS. Religions are closest thing people have to hive minds (I count cults of dictators, like in NK, as a religion, even if it is not using world 'god'). Religons influence minds of people in extreme ways. Think about Scientists or other strange cults/sects - this is example of religion completely brainwashing the person. Bigger religions are trying to be slightly more subtle, but still, religion is probably best mind manipulation tool ever invented by mankind.