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Extremism is so rampant because...

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by mirrormirror

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...people seem to think that their opinion is fact. If one person challenges another person's opinion with fact that is contrary to the opinion held, the challenger can easily be viewed by the person challenged with disdain at best and hate at worst.

How many times have you heard someone say, "How dare that person tell me what I should think or feel!", when their opinion is challenged? They should instead be willing to open their eyes to fact. Extremists on all sides close their eyes to facts and seem to cling to their opinion regardless of the facts and regardless of how the facts are presented to them.

For example...statements such as "All Catholic priests are pedophiles" or "Islam is evil" are extreme opinions that are not supported by fact.

I heard this on the radio today and it hit me like a ton of bricks. I have been sitting here
thinking about this and know that I too am guilty of rejecting facts in favor of my opinion at times. I don't do this all the time, just a little bit. After all, I am human and frail.

At risk of sounding like Bill O'Reilly...What say you? Are you guilty or not guilty? What are your examples of extremism and what are the facts that refute it?

6 replies

by gralfus

I think the comedian Lewis Black hit the nail on the head when he said that the people who go around blowing up others lack a sense of humor. And I don't mean a derogatory sense of humor either. If you can't laugh at yourself, you may be on the road to extremism.

Another view is that extremism is born out of a sense of frustration or powerlessness. There is a problem that one feels must be addressed, but normal measures don't seem to be working (or are perceived to be corrupted), so *boom*.

Of course, sometimes the problem is only in the mind of the fanatic. Take road rage for example. Some unwritten "rule" gets violated, the driver declares the other driver worthy of death, and so on. What used to be common courtesy now seems to be dead. It's all me, me, me now. I see obliviots weave in and out lanes between traffic moving at 60-70MPH, cell phone stuck to the ear. They need a remedial course in Newtonian physics, with them as the test subjects.

by garion11

A perfect example of extremisim. These dirtbags using the death and sacrifice of soldiers to further their own political cause. Supporting soldiers my ass! Cindy Sheehan and her son's death being used for their own political cause...how low can you go?

The majority of Muslims who refuse to stand up and instead display a distrubing silence to the "extremisits" in their own religion. They leave an impression that they are in fact supportive of the extremist causes, supportive of 9/11, supportive of London bombings, etc. In the end their own extremisim is coming back to haunt them in Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Turkey bombings. Poetic justice I guess...

by jardinier

I won't comment on the Democratic Party because I know almost nothing about it and, as a non American, it would not be appropriate for me to do so.

HOWEVER, I, too am alarmed that the great majority of moderate Muslims in the world don't openly and loudly disassociate themselves from the extremists.

From my own contacts, especially with evangelical Christians, this does tend to result in non-Muslims believing that the terrorists do in fact respresent the true Muslim faith.

By the way I visited the Discussion Centre to start a new thread, which will closely parallel your own.

by garion11

It is disturbing to see this among them. In contrast...look what happened to Pat Robertson in US when he stupidly stated we should "take out" Hugo Chavez (Pat Robertson founded the Christian Coalition I believe) he came under such criticism from many Christians that he eventually apologized.

Now how many Muslim clerics and leaders who openly preach violence apologized?

by mirrormirror

The media promotes extremism by placing extreme points of view on the front page. Extremism SELLS. I cannot think of any other valid reason why there is so much anti-Americanism in the American press. Without a doubt, the press is biting the hand that feeds them. The American media has fallen in love with itself and has forgotten that they are policy watchdogs and not policy makers.

What say you about the American media?

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