Seems the obvious choice would be to outsource to Pakistan and Bangladesh, both have english as official languages and can collaborate with India and each other easily.
The Labor and Green parties still have problems with the bill as it exists, but the Labor party (at least) wants to let it go based on the fact that it is 'a million times' better than the original proposed legislation." Are you sure that this wasn't the original plan all along? It's somewhat common to propose something radical, and when that gets shot down, you propose something more moderate (and what you originally wanted), and it passes with little fight.
But over 97% of mass-murders are commited by muslim men (and women). See khartoem, sudan, mogadishu and ethiopia (and others) for the current big problems.
South America would disagree with you, as well as those who suffered under the Holocaust. What about the Russian secret police? The Ugandan Lord's Resistance Army? Jim Jones? Hindus rioting in Gujarat? Buddhists massacring people in Burma? The Khmer Rouge? Don't be so completely unthinking as to think that Muslims are the main killers, and don't assume every single Muslim supports this. Terrorism and murder are both internationally condemned by Muslim leaders.
"But when the forbidden months are past, then fight and slay the infidels wherever ye find them, and seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them in every stratagem of war; but if they repent, and establish regular prayers and pay Zakat, then open the way for them: for Allah is Oft- forgiving, Most Merciful." (Quran 9:5) That verse is referring to the pagan idolators in Mecca who were trying to exterminate the Muslims. It does not give license to do terrorism or slaughter, and the Quran also says, "if they make peace, you make peace."
Come on, look how stupid your argument is. The bible is filled with genocide:
Deuteronomy 2:32 - 35 The Israelites utterly destroy the men, women, and children of Sihon.
Deuteronomy 3:6 The Israelites utterly destroy the men, women, and children of Og.
Joshua 6:21 21 And they utterly destroyed all that was in the city, both man and woman, young and old, and ox, and sheep, and ass, with the edge of the sword.
Deuteronomy 7:2 2 And when the LORD thy God shall deliver them before thee; thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew mercy unto them:
Deutenomomy 20:16 16 However, in the cities of the nations the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance, do not leave alive anything that breathes.
Judges 18:27 27 Then they took what Micah had made, and his priest, and went on to Laish, against a peaceful and unsuspecting people. They attacked them with the sword and burned down their city.
Does that mean Judaism and Christianity are evil? Should we be having a war against these religions for their supposed intolerance? Pulling things out of context is stupid.
It always happens, someone trots out the same old story that this is some sort of religious war. Islam does not say "kill the infidel," though you will get people like Bin Laden who twist the religion to fit their political goals. You're not fighting a theological war, unless you consider it one against al Qaeda (a group with twisted interpretations of Islam) only and not the rest of the Muslim world. If you say this is a war against Islam, then Muslim countries like Kuwait and Bangladesh and Qatar won't want to help you (and shouldn't). Why should Muslims sign up into the US Army (and thousands have) when America is flushing Qurans and doing Abu Ghraib? Believe it or not, Muslims are by and large against terrorism much more than you are, and have loudly condemned terrorism, but can't get coverage on CNN of their anti-terrorism rallies (Indonesia had a massive one with nearly a million people a few years back).
Look at this survey of Muslims, they determined that the "radical" ones were less religious than the moderate ones, indicating that the radicalism isn't an indication of piety, and it kills the idea that reformers are irreligious and the militants are the truly pious.
If you're Islamic, ask what REALLY happened to the pagans of Mecca when the Prophet conquored it.
They were given general amnesty. Pretty surprising, considering Meccan leaders like Abu Sufyan tried to wipe out the Muslims in the 2 decades before. Ikramah, son of Abu Jahl, fled only to return once he was promised amnesty (he later became Muslim). The pagans were generally allowed their own freedom of religion, which was kinda useless since nearly everyone in the city became Muslim in the end (ignoring hypocrisy; false conversions for political purposes).
Sorry, I know you're trying to infer that the pagans were exterminated or something, but that's not what history tells us. The Muslims had the right to kill them in retribution for all the deaths and torture they suffered at the hands of pagan slaveowners et. al, but they were forgiven in a gesture of mercy.
You raise a very good point, and since Catholics were the majority sect, I've been overgeneralizing. My fault.
However, you're raising multiple conflicting arguments why Christians do not follow Kosher. One argument is how Jesus feed everyone from Mosaic law, meaning they could eat whatever. Another is that you should live among and follow the Gentiles' way. Don't these cause division in the faith or call into question the Bible when it contradicts itself like this? Coming from a Catholic background, I was told not to be literal with the bible, due to its imperfections and changes.
Oh I never said the Muslim world was perfect, and there's reasons I live here in America by choice. My point was to show that Muslim countries aren't worthless, as you were making the case. I'm as disgusted by human rights violations as you are, and so are the people living in those countries. Do you really think the Syrians like living in a police state where they are at risk of being tortured without trial? Are you going to go further and say it's Islam's fault? Hey, Greece and Spain tortured during their fascist governments, should I blame Greek Orthodox Christianity and Catholicism, respectively? Don't blame an atrocity on one person's culture and a separate person's religion.
Any progress made in the Islamic world (during Islam, not before it) was in spite of Islam, not because of it
Then how do you explain how a bunch of Arab tribes (the worst of humanity as the Quran called them pre-Islam) suddenly rose to power after Islam and successfully made inroads into Europe and across the hemisphere? Islam taught people to learn to read, it gave them a need for science to prove and disprove faith, and it spawned a wealth of enlightenment and enrichment. When the Muslim empire fell from within, it's because they lost touch with their religion and sank due to internal corruption and various ethnic divisions. Usually the argument is how the "Christian" world didn't advance until they shook off much of their Christian influence and allowed things like Usury (which I don't entirely agree with), but you're making the argument that other religions bring people down, except Christianity which makes people rich and powerful? Why do you call my religion evil and think yours is beyond all blame?
Sometimes it seems as if white Christians are the only sentient beings in the universe. All others are just lifeless puppets attached to our strings. This handily places all responsibility on us.
Sheesh, I feel like I need a rabies shot talking to you.
Why is it when a Guatemalan man is arrested for domestic violence, he's a bad apple, or at worst, accused of reflecting on his culture, but if a Muslim was accused of the same, it's automagically his religion's fault? It's a sin in Islam to mistreat your wife, but people (not the religion) do it anyway. Are you completely blind to the double standard you've been espousing in this thread?
"I also heard that that the sun revolves around Earth, it's crazy."
Why so quick to dismiss the fact that these dictators are secular? Did Hosni Mubarak declare Islamic law? No, his secularist party is pretty suppressive of religion in general. Did Saddam Hussein ban alcohol? No, the Ba'ath party was supposed to represent secularism as one of its platforms. The only one who feigns religiousity is Saudi Arabia, but they're condemned by the rest of the Muslim world as being hypocritical and just a smooth-talking dictatorship.
"It's not impossible when it's been going on for hundreds of years, long before whitey got the idea to colonize other places."
Historically, the Jewish community was safer under Muslim rule than Christian rule in Europe. Scholars dub 700-1400 the "Golden Age of Judaism" because under Moorish rule they were safer than anywhere else in Europe, even Maimonides lived under them. It only ended after the Spanish Inquisition came in and killed or converted the Jews and Muslims.
I never said Islam and Christianity were equal. However, they are similar, as an Abrahamic faith they have common origins and shared prophets and messages like monotheism in the same God.
"Islam is a violent, totalitarian enemy of humanity that seeks to impose its will on the entire world"
No. There are some extremists, but the vast majority of Muslims don't desire that at all. Go eat pork all you like, they won't stop you, they really don't care. Don't demonize a faith of over a billion people. Critics say Bush, an evangelical Christian, is seeking to impose his will on the entire world, would that make Christianity evil? No, the overgeneralization is unfair and misleading, just as you're trying to do with Islam.
Don't feed the troll....don't feed the troll....don't feed the
The Muslim extremists are a minority. Do you honestly believe that the majority of Muslims are terrorist? Why then have the vast majority of Islamic scholars condemned terrorism? Why aren't the largest Muslim countries like Indonesia and India and Bangladesh attacking America?
Way to stuff words in my mouth. I never suggested equality, nor did I suggest the Arab world is more democratic. I'm saying you're going overboard overgeneralizing and assuming everyone supported the dictatorships they're under.
It's interesting that you throw over-generalizations around like that. Which Islamic society? Have you visited any? Lebanon has a thriving cosmopolitan scene, Egypt has led Arabic TV and culture, Jordan wants to be the IT capital of the middle east, Iranian cinema is world-renowned, Dubai shows the best and worst of unbridled capitalism, Malaysia has more advanced technology than most of America, and Nobel Prize winner Muhammad Yunis' Grameen Bank of Bangladesh revolutionized banking to the poor with microlending and new economic technique.
Come off it. Islamic societies perfected science, algebra, and astronomy while the Christian world was burning witches. They're not stuck in 600 AD, since they thrived until 1492, when the Spanish Inquisition happened, kicking the Muslims out and ending the Golden Age of Judaism (which took place under Muslim rule). The Islamic world was dealt a setback since colonialism, but you could say the same about Africa or South America, all of which are in a stage of recovery and growth today.
You also have a religion (Islam) that says in its texts that brushing the teeth is recommended. This is coming from the 7th century. I find the level of detail fascinating and a plus for the religion, it's better preserved than other religions, and amazingly still valid and contemporary 1400 years later.
Don't turn your nose up at Islam, Christianity has had its share of odd quirks. Limbo? What about having to fast for hours before eating a piece of bread that's supposedly the flesh of the son of God?
Christianity lost all its dietary rules and other Judaism-like commandments because frankly their texts aren't as well-preserved as Islam's, which gave Christian leaders the justification for loosening some of its laws like usury, but hold onto other weaker ones, like Catholic priests not being allowed to marry. You don't think Jesus (peace be upon him) would have started laying down more laws had he been given more time to lead?
False presumptions. South America is Christian, but you didn't see a lot of democracies around, did you? Look at how much of the world's drug supply comes from the Continent and Central America, do you blame Christianity for it?
There's only one "Islamic" theocracy (Iran), and there have been Christian ones in the past or attempted ones (Joseph Kony of Uganda). St. Augustine laid the theological framework for theocracy, christian holy wars, etc. Islamic countries are under secular dictatorships. Secular. Mubarak of Egypt, the Kuwaiti monarchy, Jordan's King Abdullah, Saddam Hussein. All secular, and I could go on. They're not Islamic, and they break most Islamic laws; Saddam Hussein executed people who went to the mosque too often, Mubarak jails Muslim parties, the Kuwaiti monarchy allows usury and alcohol, etc. These are dictatorships, and many got their start as a result of the colonialism, which only ended like 50 years ago. Do you blame the religion? Impossible. The British divided up Iraq and Iran and started the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the US overthrew PM Mossadegh and installed the Shah as dictator. How is that Islam's fault then if the region is unstable from those effects? There's no authentic "Islamic" country in existence; where is the caliph?
Next you'll be telling me it's Christian nature to elect someone messianic and apocalyptic as Bush. Christianity also produces violent followers who demand their will upon others, have you shut your eyes since WWII? Holocausts, abortion bans, criminalization of homosexual acts, etc. What makes you shield Christianity and attack Islam?
Nobody said Fox News is the ONLY source of conservative news, but it's prominent and a name everyones heard of. Look at how everyone mentions Diebold when discussing voting machine problems, or Bill Gates when people discuss nerds. Of course there's others, but you focus on the most notable example. Stereotypical example, and a simple heuristic.
Does Islam predispose me to violence? I think you have 7 million Muslims in America who suddenly disagree with you. The largest Muslim country is Indonesia, are they joining the Iraq war? No.
What if I said Southern Baptism or Judaism or Hinduism predisposes me to racism? First, don't overgeneralize everyone in a religion, second, Islam is no different than many other religions, and third, Islam doesn't command violence we're seeing today, just as Christianity doesn't command the violence we've seen either.
Buprenorphine (brand name Suboxone) is supposed to replace methadone as a non-habit-forming drug for withdrawl. Does that count as a painkiller? It's very hard to abuse, and even has naloxone to prevent people from injecting it.
I'm not a doctor or pharmacist, but don't we have drugs like Neurontin (Gabapentin) that decrease the sensation already? Aside from medication side effects, is this any better or effective?
Yet he still executed people who prayed too much and even Sunnis, of which he claimed to be a group.
Muslims worldwide reviled him as a hypocrite, having the cameras come to his palace to videotape him praying, but drinking alcohol when they were off. He was a secularist to the day he lost power, but paid lip service to religion to play to the crowd.
Elections were held in the 7th century Muslim world, and even women voted. American women couldn't vote until 1920! Pakistan and Bangladesh are two majority-Muslim countries with parliamentary democracies, and both even had women Prime Ministers! When has America had a female president? Iran and Iraq were once democracies. The US helped overthrow Iranian PM Mossadegh and install the Shah. This was openly admitted by the CIA decades later. Algeria was a democracy, but the military engaged in a coup when the Muslim party won fairly in 1992. The US and France backed the coup, causing the Muslim world to lose all faith in Americans clamoring for democracy. Hamas won the Palestinian elections fair and square, but Israel arrested 25% of its parliament and cabinet, and the US condoned it.
Google "Stern Gang" and "Irgun." Jewish settlers attacked Arabs and British people. David Ben-Gurion was a wanted man with a reward by the British for capturing the terrorist. King David Hotel Bombing, a terrorist act they still celebrate.
The Slate review is talking about their 2004 study, not their new 2006 one.
IraqBodyCount raises good questions, but many have valid answers. For example, not everyone goes and gets a death certificate. Iraqi Muslims don't believe in embalming or open casket funerals days later. They believe that the body should be buried by sunset the day of death, in a plain wooden box. So there is no reason to expect them to take the body to the morgue. Although there are benefits to registering with the government for a death certificate, there are also disadvantages. Many families who have had someone killed believe that the government or the Americans were involved, and will have wanted to avoid drawing further attention to themselves by filling out state forms and giving their address. Juan Cole has more.
Iraqi blogger Riverbend says every family she knows has lost someone, so she feels the number is plausible.
Both Lancet studies have been so widely discredited by statistician
Please show me some evidence to that fact. It was peer-reviewed and used valid crisis casualty counting methods. Was there a problem with their chi-squared value? Can you show me a valid debunking of their study?
Slashdot Mirror
Seems the obvious choice would be to outsource to Pakistan and Bangladesh, both have english as official languages and can collaborate with India and each other easily.
South America would disagree with you, as well as those who suffered under the Holocaust. What about the Russian secret police? The Ugandan Lord's Resistance Army? Jim Jones? Hindus rioting in Gujarat? Buddhists massacring people in Burma? The Khmer Rouge? Don't be so completely unthinking as to think that Muslims are the main killers, and don't assume every single Muslim supports this. Terrorism and murder are both internationally condemned by Muslim leaders.
"But when the forbidden months are past, then fight and slay the infidels wherever ye find them, and seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them in every stratagem of war; but if they repent, and establish regular prayers and pay Zakat, then open the way for them: for Allah is Oft- forgiving, Most Merciful." (Quran 9:5) That verse is referring to the pagan idolators in Mecca who were trying to exterminate the Muslims. It does not give license to do terrorism or slaughter, and the Quran also says, "if they make peace, you make peace."
Come on, look how stupid your argument is. The bible is filled with genocide:
Does that mean Judaism and Christianity are evil? Should we be having a war against these religions for their supposed intolerance? Pulling things out of context is stupid.
The correct answer to them all is "D"
"There have been several "proof of concept viruses" for OS X"
No, there have only been trojans, nothing to infect machine to machine like a virus or worm. Please show me these virii you're discussing for OS X.
Look at this survey of Muslims, they determined that the "radical" ones were less religious than the moderate ones, indicating that the radicalism isn't an indication of piety, and it kills the idea that reformers are irreligious and the militants are the truly pious.
They were given general amnesty. Pretty surprising, considering Meccan leaders like Abu Sufyan tried to wipe out the Muslims in the 2 decades before. Ikramah, son of Abu Jahl, fled only to return once he was promised amnesty (he later became Muslim). The pagans were generally allowed their own freedom of religion, which was kinda useless since nearly everyone in the city became Muslim in the end (ignoring hypocrisy; false conversions for political purposes).
Sorry, I know you're trying to infer that the pagans were exterminated or something, but that's not what history tells us. The Muslims had the right to kill them in retribution for all the deaths and torture they suffered at the hands of pagan slaveowners et. al, but they were forgiven in a gesture of mercy.
You raise a very good point, and since Catholics were the majority sect, I've been overgeneralizing. My fault.
However, you're raising multiple conflicting arguments why Christians do not follow Kosher. One argument is how Jesus feed everyone from Mosaic law, meaning they could eat whatever. Another is that you should live among and follow the Gentiles' way. Don't these cause division in the faith or call into question the Bible when it contradicts itself like this? Coming from a Catholic background, I was told not to be literal with the bible, due to its imperfections and changes.
Then how do you explain how a bunch of Arab tribes (the worst of humanity as the Quran called them pre-Islam) suddenly rose to power after Islam and successfully made inroads into Europe and across the hemisphere? Islam taught people to learn to read, it gave them a need for science to prove and disprove faith, and it spawned a wealth of enlightenment and enrichment. When the Muslim empire fell from within, it's because they lost touch with their religion and sank due to internal corruption and various ethnic divisions. Usually the argument is how the "Christian" world didn't advance until they shook off much of their Christian influence and allowed things like Usury (which I don't entirely agree with), but you're making the argument that other religions bring people down, except Christianity which makes people rich and powerful? Why do you call my religion evil and think yours is beyond all blame?
Sheesh, I feel like I need a rabies shot talking to you.
"South America has a different culture"
Why is it when a Guatemalan man is arrested for domestic violence, he's a bad apple, or at worst, accused of reflecting on his culture, but if a Muslim was accused of the same, it's automagically his religion's fault? It's a sin in Islam to mistreat your wife, but people (not the religion) do it anyway. Are you completely blind to the double standard you've been espousing in this thread?
"I also heard that that the sun revolves around Earth, it's crazy."
Why so quick to dismiss the fact that these dictators are secular? Did Hosni Mubarak declare Islamic law? No, his secularist party is pretty suppressive of religion in general. Did Saddam Hussein ban alcohol? No, the Ba'ath party was supposed to represent secularism as one of its platforms. The only one who feigns religiousity is Saudi Arabia, but they're condemned by the rest of the Muslim world as being hypocritical and just a smooth-talking dictatorship.
"It's not impossible when it's been going on for hundreds of years, long before whitey got the idea to colonize other places."
Historically, the Jewish community was safer under Muslim rule than Christian rule in Europe. Scholars dub 700-1400 the "Golden Age of Judaism" because under Moorish rule they were safer than anywhere else in Europe, even Maimonides lived under them. It only ended after the Spanish Inquisition came in and killed or converted the Jews and Muslims.
I never said Islam and Christianity were equal. However, they are similar, as an Abrahamic faith they have common origins and shared prophets and messages like monotheism in the same God.
"Islam is a violent, totalitarian enemy of humanity that seeks to impose its will on the entire world"
No. There are some extremists, but the vast majority of Muslims don't desire that at all. Go eat pork all you like, they won't stop you, they really don't care. Don't demonize a faith of over a billion people. Critics say Bush, an evangelical Christian, is seeking to impose his will on the entire world, would that make Christianity evil? No, the overgeneralization is unfair and misleading, just as you're trying to do with Islam.
Don't feed the troll....don't feed the troll....don't feed the
The Muslim extremists are a minority. Do you honestly believe that the majority of Muslims are terrorist? Why then have the vast majority of Islamic scholars condemned terrorism? Why aren't the largest Muslim countries like Indonesia and India and Bangladesh attacking America?
Way to stuff words in my mouth. I never suggested equality, nor did I suggest the Arab world is more democratic. I'm saying you're going overboard overgeneralizing and assuming everyone supported the dictatorships they're under.
What I had in mind were Seventh Day Adventists, who still keep Kosher IIRC.
It's interesting that you throw over-generalizations around like that. Which Islamic society? Have you visited any? Lebanon has a thriving cosmopolitan scene, Egypt has led Arabic TV and culture, Jordan wants to be the IT capital of the middle east, Iranian cinema is world-renowned, Dubai shows the best and worst of unbridled capitalism, Malaysia has more advanced technology than most of America, and Nobel Prize winner Muhammad Yunis' Grameen Bank of Bangladesh revolutionized banking to the poor with microlending and new economic technique.
Come off it. Islamic societies perfected science, algebra, and astronomy while the Christian world was burning witches. They're not stuck in 600 AD, since they thrived until 1492, when the Spanish Inquisition happened, kicking the Muslims out and ending the Golden Age of Judaism (which took place under Muslim rule). The Islamic world was dealt a setback since colonialism, but you could say the same about Africa or South America, all of which are in a stage of recovery and growth today.
As are the Muslim extremists, a vocal minority.
Did you know that 90% of the Arab world considers democracy a good thing? Only 89% of Americans said yes to the same survey.
You also have a religion (Islam) that says in its texts that brushing the teeth is recommended. This is coming from the 7th century. I find the level of detail fascinating and a plus for the religion, it's better preserved than other religions, and amazingly still valid and contemporary 1400 years later.
Don't turn your nose up at Islam, Christianity has had its share of odd quirks. Limbo? What about having to fast for hours before eating a piece of bread that's supposedly the flesh of the son of God?
Christianity lost all its dietary rules and other Judaism-like commandments because frankly their texts aren't as well-preserved as Islam's, which gave Christian leaders the justification for loosening some of its laws like usury, but hold onto other weaker ones, like Catholic priests not being allowed to marry. You don't think Jesus (peace be upon him) would have started laying down more laws had he been given more time to lead?
False presumptions. South America is Christian, but you didn't see a lot of democracies around, did you? Look at how much of the world's drug supply comes from the Continent and Central America, do you blame Christianity for it?
There's only one "Islamic" theocracy (Iran), and there have been Christian ones in the past or attempted ones (Joseph Kony of Uganda). St. Augustine laid the theological framework for theocracy, christian holy wars, etc. Islamic countries are under secular dictatorships. Secular. Mubarak of Egypt, the Kuwaiti monarchy, Jordan's King Abdullah, Saddam Hussein. All secular, and I could go on. They're not Islamic, and they break most Islamic laws; Saddam Hussein executed people who went to the mosque too often, Mubarak jails Muslim parties, the Kuwaiti monarchy allows usury and alcohol, etc. These are dictatorships, and many got their start as a result of the colonialism, which only ended like 50 years ago. Do you blame the religion? Impossible. The British divided up Iraq and Iran and started the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the US overthrew PM Mossadegh and installed the Shah as dictator. How is that Islam's fault then if the region is unstable from those effects? There's no authentic "Islamic" country in existence; where is the caliph?
Next you'll be telling me it's Christian nature to elect someone messianic and apocalyptic as Bush. Christianity also produces violent followers who demand their will upon others, have you shut your eyes since WWII? Holocausts, abortion bans, criminalization of homosexual acts, etc. What makes you shield Christianity and attack Islam?
Nobody said Fox News is the ONLY source of conservative news, but it's prominent and a name everyones heard of. Look at how everyone mentions Diebold when discussing voting machine problems, or Bill Gates when people discuss nerds. Of course there's others, but you focus on the most notable example. Stereotypical example, and a simple heuristic.
-1 Flamebait?
Does Islam predispose me to violence? I think you have 7 million Muslims in America who suddenly disagree with you. The largest Muslim country is Indonesia, are they joining the Iraq war? No.
What if I said Southern Baptism or Judaism or Hinduism predisposes me to racism? First, don't overgeneralize everyone in a religion, second, Islam is no different than many other religions, and third, Islam doesn't command violence we're seeing today, just as Christianity doesn't command the violence we've seen either.
Buprenorphine (brand name Suboxone) is supposed to replace methadone as a non-habit-forming drug for withdrawl. Does that count as a painkiller? It's very hard to abuse, and even has naloxone to prevent people from injecting it.
I'm not a doctor or pharmacist, but don't we have drugs like Neurontin (Gabapentin) that decrease the sensation already? Aside from medication side effects, is this any better or effective?
Yet he still executed people who prayed too much and even Sunnis, of which he claimed to be a group.
Muslims worldwide reviled him as a hypocrite, having the cameras come to his palace to videotape him praying, but drinking alcohol when they were off. He was a secularist to the day he lost power, but paid lip service to religion to play to the crowd.
It's not Islam's fault, it's the dictator's.
Democracy isn't a part of Islamic culture?
Elections were held in the 7th century Muslim world, and even women voted. American women couldn't vote until 1920!
Pakistan and Bangladesh are two majority-Muslim countries with parliamentary democracies, and both even had women Prime Ministers! When has America had a female president?
Iran and Iraq were once democracies. The US helped overthrow Iranian PM Mossadegh and install the Shah. This was openly admitted by the CIA decades later.
Algeria was a democracy, but the military engaged in a coup when the Muslim party won fairly in 1992. The US and France backed the coup, causing the Muslim world to lose all faith in Americans clamoring for democracy.
Hamas won the Palestinian elections fair and square, but Israel arrested 25% of its parliament and cabinet, and the US condoned it.
Google "Stern Gang" and "Irgun." Jewish settlers attacked Arabs and British people. David Ben-Gurion was a wanted man with a reward by the British for capturing the terrorist.
King David Hotel Bombing, a terrorist act they still celebrate.
The Slate review is talking about their 2004 study, not their new 2006 one.
IraqBodyCount raises good questions, but many have valid answers. For example, not everyone goes and gets a death certificate. Iraqi Muslims don't believe in embalming or open casket funerals days later. They believe that the body should be buried by sunset the day of death, in a plain wooden box. So there is no reason to expect them to take the body to the morgue. Although there are benefits to registering with the government for a death certificate, there are also disadvantages. Many families who have had someone killed believe that the government or the Americans were involved, and will have wanted to avoid drawing further attention to themselves by filling out state forms and giving their address. Juan Cole has more.
Iraqi blogger Riverbend says every family she knows has lost someone, so she feels the number is plausible.
Please show me some evidence to that fact. It was peer-reviewed and used valid crisis casualty counting methods. Was there a problem with their chi-squared value? Can you show me a valid debunking of their study?