The Burning Holy Books Saga

[fireheart17]

OK, I'm putting these all in the same thread since they're about the same topic-roughly.

Long story short: Pastor Terry Jones wanted to burn the Koran (he stopped voluntarily). A group in South Africa wanted to retaliate by burning the Bible (they were stopped by a high court decision). And an atheist in Australia decided to shut them both up by smoking pages of BOTH the Koran and the Bible (this guy posted his stunt on youtube >.<).

The Koran-burning attempt
The African Retaliation
The Holy Smoker

Ok I gave them titles that are probably stupid. But it pretty much sums up the entire situation.

Your thoughts?

[draggar]

I can't verify when this happened but with all the cameras you'd think there would be a race to get it up quickly (I think it was in NYC, although anyone can get NYPD shirts):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OClIe...ipcontrinter=1

At least the smoker is willing to show that it's all the same (in their own way).

[Kimmik]

Personally I think disrespecting anyone's Faith is the lowest form, especially destroying a book that is considered holy to some. Torah's, Bibles, Qurans, and so on. I think that our country is disgraceful in the fact that in this day and age we piss all over anything that is not like us. Head Coverings, turbans, styles of Dress, Gods worshiped, who people love, what makes a normal family and on and on.

[Ghel]

I don't see what the big deal is. Objects have the meaning that we give them. If somebody wants to burn their own legally-acquired copy of a book, I don't see a problem with that. Especially in our information age, you can't destroy an idea by burning a book.

OTOH, I have to wonder what a person, such as this Terry Jones fellow, hopes to accomplish by announcing that they're going to destroy a few (comparitively few, that is, since there's likely hundreds of millions of copies of the Koran in existence) copies of some other group's holy book. As far as I can tell, it's just an attention-seeking ploy, with "meaning" tacked on afterwards.

The real problem here is that a particular group is trying to force outsiders to treat their religious symbol with the same reverence that they do. I can accept the fact that the follower respects the book, but that doesn't mean I have to respect it. I don't have to treat a copy of the Koran (or the Bible) with any more respect than I do a copy of Twilight.

[Hobbs]

<snip>

And this you're no better than the Terry Jones fellow. At least he has a (bigoted) reason for being disrespectful.

Just because something is legal, doesn't mean you should do it. Would you also support the WBC "Thank God for IED's at a soldier's funeral? Don't answer that...I think I know the answer.

[Rageaholic]

What I fail to understand is why that Koran burning nutcase getting all this national attention. More importantly, how did he get all this attention?

If he hadn't been given all the attention from the media, no one would have known or cared about this clown.

[HYHYBT]

The real problem here is that a particular group is trying to force outsiders to treat their religious symbol with the same reverence that they do.

Not at all. There is a vast difference between merely not respecting a symbol, and going out of your way to publicize to the world your hatred and contempt (real or not) of that symbol and, because that's how symbols work, by extension all those who value it.

Ok I gave them titles that are probably stupid. But it pretty much sums up the entire situation.

Your thoughts?

Just more proof, as if any were needed, that nutcases come in all varieties.

[Ghel]

There is a vast difference between merely not respecting a symbol, and going out of your way to publicize to the world your hatred and contempt (real or not) of that symbol and, because that's how symbols work, by extension all those who value it.

Hating a symbol suggests that you place some sort of value on it. It's a different type of value, sure.

Personally, I place the same value on the Bible or Koran or Tao Te Ching as any other book. No more, no less. So I would be as likely to burn a Bible, etc., as I would any other book. Which is very unlikely. Nor am I likely to get upset is someone else burns said book, as long as it is their own property (they didn't steal it).

Here in the US, we have a number of rights and freedoms. One of those is the freedom of speech, which allows people to publicly burn books that they disagree with. One of those is NOT the right to never be offended.

[Greenday]

Go ahead then. Buy a ton of bibles or Qu'rans and light them up. It's obviously no big deal since they mean nothing to you.

But you won't do it. Even if money wasn't an issue, it wouldn't matter. You wouldn't do it because other people put value into those books. You're pissing on their beliefs.

Burning these books is an attempt to piss on other people's beliefs, not show what your beliefs are.

[blas87]

There are people all over the world who are constantly burning or defacing anything that represents America, and then others get their panties in a bind when someone in America wants to burn another religion's holy book?

Hypocritical, much?

Not that I agree for one second with what that yoohoo was planning. I think the guy's a fucking retard who shouldn't have been given any attention. It was probably just an idle threat for attention and to make a name for himself.

[Hobbs]

There are people all over the world who are constantly burning or defacing anything that represents America, and then others get their panties in a bind when someone in America wants to burn another religion's holy book?

Hypocritical, much?

Not that I agree for one second with what that yoohoo was planning. I think the guy's a fucking retard who shouldn't have been given any attention. It was probably just an idle threat for attention and to make a name for himself.

How is it hypocritical? They're not the ones burning and defacing American symbols.

[Ginger Tea]

I'm surprised this topic didnt show up sooner, I thought about posting about it myself when I heard about it a few days ago, but as it was linkied to 9/11 I wasnt sure if it was against the TOS without reading em again.

book burnings no matter the subject should be done with your own property, If he wanted to burn 100 korans, I hope he has the dosh for 100 of em, having said that, as it was 9/11 motivated and to be done on said day, why the F didnt he just donate the money he would have set up in smoke, to one of the many fund raisers linked to it?

way back when people wanted to burn as many copies of the satanic verses as possible, book shops didn't care as long as said books were purchaced and not burnt in the shop.
I myself read that book as my father purchaced a copy to read to find out what the fuss was about, we both read it and found it to be a rather bland story, at the time I didn't know about the "thou shalt not depecit the prophet mohammed" bit so I don't recall if he did or not.
so all these book burnings just netted mr Rushdie a few more notes to spend whilst in hiding

[Talon]

Go ahead then. Buy a ton of bibles or Qu'rans and light them up.

But you won't do it. Even if money wasn't an issue, it wouldn't matter. You wouldn't do it because other people put value into those books. You're pissing on their beliefs.

I wouldn't burn a book, any book. Because the act of burning a book is that of a coward, of someone who fears or is threatened by its contents. I loathe the violence and misogyny of the Quaran and the Old Testament, and I will criticize them. But I will not destroy them.

There are people all over the world who are constantly burning or defacing anything that represents America, and then others get their panties in a bind when someone in America wants to burn another religion's holy book?

Hypocritical, much?

Hear hear!

Not that I agree for one second with what that yoohoo was planning. I think the guy's a fucking retard who shouldn't have been given any attention. It was probably just an idle threat for attention and to make a name for himself.

Again I agree. But you gotta admire the guy for his ability to play the entire world for fools. Look! All you need to do to get worldwide media attention is to threaten to burn some books. Imagine by how much his clown's followers will swell?

On a sobering note, as of this morning, I heard on the news that 2 people were killed in riots in Afghanistan, over the book burning that didn't happen.

I can't decide who's the bigger douchebag: the non-book-burning pastor, or the hypersensitive hair-trigger-rioters in the muslim world who seriously need to Get The Fuck Over Themselves. One thing is for sure, this episode was a giant victory for douchbaggery

[Rageaholic]

I say the bigger douchebags were the ones who were killing people over the non book burning. You're right, they are way too hypersensitive over there. Anybody who's going to kill because someone offended them needs an asylum.

[Ghel]

Go ahead then. Buy a ton of bibles or Qu'rans and light them up. It's obviously no big deal since they mean nothing to you.

But you won't do it.

I don't see why not. I've got several old copies of the Bible that I was given as gifts when I was younger. I wouldn't mind parting with one of them. I bet I have some other books that I don't read any more that I could add to the fire. Maybe I'll roast some marshmallows this evening.

I can't decide who's the bigger douchebag: the non-book-burning pastor, or the hypersensitive hair-trigger-rioters in the muslim world who seriously need to Get The Fuck Over Themselves.

Hear hear!


There may have been a time when burning books was done to squelch the ideas contained inside. But in today's world, books are mass-produced, available in electronic form or as audio books. You can't destroy ideas, and so book burning loses any impact it might have had in earlier times. My suggestion is to treat it as unimportant.