Another reminder why religion shouldn't make the rules

last SG · 2007-11-20T15:42:39+00:00

erh.. Morality is still a ongoing subject if you read philosophy where people discuss what is moral and its various definitions even in modern times. In my p...

Phaze SG

This is why the word "f*cktard" was created. The court in the eastern town of Al-Qatif is apparently staffed by f*cktards.

Saudi punishes gang rape victim with 200 lashes
Nov 15 10:51 AM US/Eastern

A court in the ultra-conservative kingdom of Saudi Arabia is punishing a female victim of gang rape with 200 lashes and six months in jail, a newspaper reported on Thursday.

The 19-year-old woman -- whose six armed attackers have been sentenced to jail terms -- was initially ordered to undergo 90 lashes for "being in the car of an unrelated male at the time of the rape," the Arab News reported.

But in a new verdict issued after Saudi Arabia's Higher Judicial Council ordered a retrial, the court in the eastern town of Al-Qatif more than doubled the number of lashes to 200.

A court source told the English-language Arab News that the judges had decided to punish the woman further for "her attempt to aggravate and influence the judiciary through the media."

Saudi Arabia enforces a strict Islamic doctrine known as Wahhabism and forbids unrelated men and women from associating with each other, bans women from driving and forces them to cover head-to-toe in public.

Last year, the court sentenced six Saudi men to between one and five years in jail for the rape as well as ordering lashes for the victim, a member of the minority Shiite community.

But the woman's lawyer Abdul Rahman al-Lahem appealed, arguing that the punishments were too lenient in a country where the offence can carry the death penalty.

In the new verdict issued on Wednesday, the Al-Qatif court also toughened the sentences against the six men to between two and nine years in prison.

The case has angered members of Saudi Arabia's Shiite community. The convicted men are Sunni Muslims, the dominant community in the oil-rich Gulf state.

Lahem, also a human rights activist, told AFP on Wednesday that the court had banned him from handling the rape case and withdrew his licence to practise law because he challenged the verdict.

He said he has also been summoned by the ministry of justice to appear before a disciplinary committee in December.

Lahem said the move might be due to his criticism of some judicial institutions, and "contradicts King Abdullah's quest to introduce reform, especially in the justice system."

King Abdullah last month approved a new body of laws regulating the judicial system in Saudi Arabia, which rules on the basis of sharia, or Islamic law.

thehappybunny SG

lol at those incompetent sand-hoppers

Phaze SG

Once the oil runs out, they will go back to living in tents.

Spartans SG

As I have mentioned before, the Islamic rules are very biased against the female gender.

Ask yourself this qn. Who wrote the Qu'ran? Who set the Islamic rules? of course is Men. (dun tell me Qu'ran just drop from heaven, given by God Allah himself)

As such, in the ancient time, they used religious laws as means to rule over the females. It is very often to see laws that are discriminative to the women in Arab Islamic laws.

In this case, you have to ask yourself again why a rape victim is punished more severely than the gang rapers. Cos the Islamic law put 99% of the blame on women. Men rape becos women wore too sexy clothes.

So funny logic. then guess Arab men (even other Muslims eg in Malaysia) have no self constraint at all?

Phaze SG

Yup. Men use religion to justify all kinds of unjust actions. Since they realize they have no right to impose their will on others, they claim that god commanded it.

Just like in Singapore. I don't like homosexuality so it should be illegal because god commanded it. Rolling Eyes

thehappybunny SG

Qu'ran = fiction novel

honestly, its so damn obvious his 'revelations' were just an excuse for him to impose his own will on others on the pretext that Allah wants him to do so.

Phaze SG

You could say the same for any religious book.

The Book of Mormon is a good example.

Spartans SG

Talking about unjust act, do you all still remember in 2005 (I'm not sure also), there was a big fire in a all-female school in Saudi Arabia.

But the Saudi religious police refused to let the female students out of the school simply because the dress code. The students were not covered from top to bottom. In the end, most of the female students died in the fire tragedy just because the religious police deny their escapes.

So to those moronic idiotic brainless Saudi religious police, female lives are worthed much lesser than some stupid discriminative Arabic Islamic dress code. Screw those retards.

Phaze SG

Please use a condom.

Personally, I wouldn't do it. :p

But seriously, it's hard not to get angry at this kind of news.

Spartans SG

Seriously, I do not understand their mentality.

Why do them have to put religion in the utmost way without any regard to simple humane concern?

Some of these Muslims had (have is better word cos they are still doing it now) stupid things like destroying ancient Buddha statues.

SturmDerSchatten SG

It’s called zealotry, and unfortunately, we can’t do anything about it. Short of an apocalyptic event. It’s a pity people can’t handle things the very “Jedi” way, like think “Well, too bad.” if a guy refuses to follow one’s customs.

gUms SG

Not only Buddha statues , When they(muslim warriors) invaded india , they destoryed most of the hindu/buddha temples , and rule india and its ppl with terror , killing them and forcing them to convert to muslim , (Mass genocide on the hindus or other idol worshippers)

But after 1000 yrs of ruling india , they finally evaporated , thank god for india and its ppl , and today india has 80% hindus again , which should have been 100%, and once again ruled by non-muslim (God bless india and its ppl for that) .

I have many good malay friends , and like them alot , but i cant say the same for their religion !

Im not Christian nor catholic or Atheism , but i would say good things about them , A religion should nv teach violents against other human.

If you read other common religions , the only violents they mention is with the demons , not with human.

Anyway I proud and thank god everyday , that i am a KAFIR!!!! Laughing
Anyway its funny how this ppl are against ppl of other religion , and the funny thing is they believe in god , and they believe god created everything , but are violent against other human .... Other humans were created by god also wor , so why dont you respect others.

Sorry to the :athesim bro/sis , for talking abit too much about god.

Laughing

Herzog_Zwei SG

Religion brings troubles in this time.

Trump_Card SG

Great lyrics condemning religion

"Can't explain the other side
Answers lost before their eyes
Violence surges from inside
A state of mind that never dies
Born into a chosen way
Life that doesn't fit today
To die a painful death it seems
Is better than your misery
Contemplating rearranging
Changing all your ways of tinking

Everyday you life seems like
It's pushed into a hole
Acting out another's needs
To rule a soul eternally
Adjusting to another set
Of values takes it's toll
Growing in a lunacy
That plays on your stupidity

Circle of beliefs
Secrets never keep
Living in a lie
Right before your eyes
Born without a brain
Helpless is your name
All you do is pray
Living is your pain

Mentally so small you can't
Accept another side
Your point of view a memory
Because it doesn't mean a thing
The resurrection's waiting for
A world without sin
The temples will crumble
While awaiting for it to begin

Circle of beliefs
Secrets never keep
Living in a lie
Right before your eyes
Losing is your way
Mental disarray
I can see your strain
You don't want to be saved

Can't you see no validity
Must control silencing of souls
Slow decay spreading through your brain
Devastate the deviant will dominate

Can't you see there's no validity
Your way is not the only way
Slow decay spreading through your brain
Don't you see the power of the enemy
Tyranny total supremacy
Control the silencing of souls
Slavery within the entity
Devastate, dominate

Can't explain the reason why
Someone would rather live than die
If dying is the only way
To end a life of mental stains
All your life he's been the cause
A man impaled upon a cross
Pure religious holocaust
If religion dies it's not my loss

Perception always biased Feeding off a fallacy
Your systematic way of life
Decided for you every night
Intentional conflicting words
Avoid solidity
Blinded by the holy light
That constantly consumes your mind

Circle of beliefs
Secrets never keep
Living in a lie
Right before your eyes
Burning in my wake
Souls are free to take
You're following a fake
Everyone awake!!!"

Slayer - Circle of beliefs

IvanSong SG

Just a question ...

how does an atheist differentiate between good and bad?

Herzog_Zwei SG

Atheists and irreligionists have their own code of conduct and they do follow the nominal legal system.

IvanSong SG

But following one's own code seems a bit too subjective? Would leave the interpretation of good and bad open to abuse, and based on my feelings, wouldn't it?

Herzog_Zwei SG

Mr Song, did you purposefully leave out the "and" word? I said follow their own code of conduct as well the nominal law as per country.

frederikan SG

as a free thinker, i basically practice ethics wherever i go, and try to be as moral as i can being a person of conscience.

atheists do have code of conducts but they are rational beings who constantly question everything and practice critical thinking, before making important decisions.

i believe as free thinkers, we are free from religious dogmas in a way that it gives us the ability to make the most out of life instead of thinking of how are we to spend our days in heaven after we die.

as a psychology undergrad, i learned that it is our innate nature that we humans have the potential to do good and to be moral depending on our upbringing. religious christians would argue that we are born sinners in that no one taught us how to lie or steal. but all these are common reactions in-built in us for survival purposes.

we lie sometimes to prevent ourselves from being exposed. sometimes, this is so because we have to protect or defend ourselves against other people with bad intentions who are out to get us. we do not tell the truth simply to expose ourselves and our weaknesses so that our opponents can destroy us completely and easily. occasionally, we tell white lies in order to protect our love one's feelings, or to be sensitive towards their emotions.

there are many reasons why we steal things. one of them could be because some people are too poor to an extent whereby they have to steal in order to save somebody's life. imagine your wife is dying of a strange disease, and the doctor said that there's only one type of medication that could cure her illness. and this medication could be found in the pharmacy and it was really expensive. now, if you just got retrenched, and your savings could not even afford getting your wife a proper treatment of that drug, what would you do? your friends ran away when you started borrowing money from them. your relatives only contributed a little bit but not enough to buy that drug. faced with little options, you could either choose to let your wife die, or do your best no matter what to get her cured by stealing that drug.

i could give many examples still... but, my point is that morality is subjective and it cannot be subjected to a fixed law, such as THOU SHALT NOT STEAL. because our ultimate intention is to do things according to our conscience and our moral principles. the christians do not realise that besides having the potential to "sin", we humans also have the potential to do good as well. even though a deed may seem immoral in someone's eyes, sometimes, it is that little bit of evil that could eventually bring about the greater good for the greater number.

Religion thrive in the absolutes.

I believe that many things are relative in their own ways.

IvanSong SG

uhh.. no, i didnt leave it out intentionally. i felt both of them were rather subjective and open to (mis)interpretation. As in the legal system changes from time to time, what was considered criminal before, has been legalized. You seem to be suggesting keeping a balance between both... So how do you keep up with the changes?

If someone were to murder my loved ones, but the murderer exploits the loopholes within the legal system to escape incarceration, would u still find the murderer a good or bad person?