Hudson Jones

Looks like the usual hardliners on our board are once again trying to sell their one-dimensional, extremist version of politics. I found the following article from a news outlet which gives a unique perspective from Iranians living outside of Iran. They normally have the freedom to be as open and frank about the situation in Iran without the fear journalists in Iran usually have in criticizing their government. Here are some excerpts: Despite their limited choice, Iranian voters opted to back a strategy that diluted the power of radical hardliners within the Islamic Republic rather than conceding the political game to them. Last week’s election results strengthened the alignment between Iranian reformists, centrists (government supporters), and moderate conservatives aimed at weakening the hardliners. After the first round of parliamentary elections, nation-wide results for the 290 seats have not been conclusively declared. But the existing strong majority in favor of those aligned with the most conservative factions has clearly been weakened. According to rough estimates, the List of Hope Coalition won 83 seats (gaining approximately 29 percent control). The conservatives and those affiliated with the “Principalists” camp won 78 seats (roughly 27 percent of the votes). Independents captured 60 seats (gaining roughly 21 percent of the votes)-while five seats went to minorities. An estimated 64-68 seats will be decided in a second round of voting expected in April. In the Assembly of Experts, the List of Hope triumphed in Tehran where it gained all but one of the 16 available seats. The body holds a total of 88 seats, the majority retained by conservative candidates. The articles continues with 5 opportunities that Rouhani and his supporters have and the 5 challenges that they will come up against after these elections.

Is Iran a Dictatorship or a Democracy? It's both. Do these elections matter? Of course! Here is a video that gives a pretty good explanation: CLICK FOR VIDEO

Almost every conversation with you reaches this point, where you try to equate two situations that are very different. No other country is receiving $4 billion a year (more to come in the future) in military assistance. No other country is receiving the type of political backing in the UN through its vetos. No country country has another country's politicians stumbling and tripping over each other to kiss the ass of its leader, while in another breath doing the total opposite to its own leader. No other country receives as much media self-censorship in its favour (Although, there seems to be a slight change recently). When lobbying gets to the point where it creates a situation where the country's own interest and the safety of its own people is sacrificed for a foreign country's own agenda, then I would say that's a problem. Once the average American understands this point, then there will be a political shift. Until then, we will continue to see actions taken by private groups like we're seeing the successful and growing BDS movement. This is not about what a Canadian thinks. You would be naive not to see the powerful worldwide movement that continues to get bigger. We all know that won't stop the BDS movement. It will most likely draw more attention to the BDS movement and make it even stronger. The fear that our governments have in being truthful about the injustices and the fear they have in criticizing Israel is sometimes comedic and I would have thought, a "straight shooter" such as yourself would be disgusted by the way some of these Western governments kiss a foreign country's ass out of the fear of their political careers.

Already explained to you, but I will explain again: Our governments do not support those countries through political and financial means. That's the biggest difference. The lobby groups still have power over the government both in the U.S. and in Canada. That's not a secret. The governments will continue to do what their masters want them to do, until the voice of the people is loud enough that they will have no other choice but to respond to the people, à la Apartheid South Africa. The voices are getting louder and stronger. The BDS movement is becoming a problem and that's why we're seeing these useless actions which will not stop the momentum and will only draw more attention to the BDS movement.

You seem pretty confident that people like that exist. Maybe there are people like that. I know that myself and pretty much every person I have come across who is advocating for justice for the Palestinians are not what you describe. What Israel has been doing in the past 60+ years and our governments' lack of interest in being honest about it is a major issue here. The number of people opposing this trend will continue to grow to the point that our governments' will no longer be able to support Israel's criminal behaviour.

Because of three main reasons: 1) No one here tries to excuse the criminal acts by the government of those countries 2) Our Western governments, either due to pressure and/or heavy lobbying, are hesitant to be truthful and condemn Israel's criminal behaviour, therefore enabling Israel to continue doing what they have been doing for the past 60+ years. 3) The leader of the Western World gives around $4 billion a year enabling Israel to continue with their criminal behaviour There are MANY Jews who speak out against Israel's criminal behaviour and what Zionism is. Which is the acceptance and the excuse of committing human rights violations of one group for the selfish gain of another group of people. Again, what is happening in Israel and the Occupied Territories and our governments' reaction to it is very similar to what happened in Apartheid South Africa. Our governments, at first, supported the Apartheid government, but after pressure from people around the world, they had no choice but to change their tone. Same thing will happen with Israel. Not many people, who are actually learning about the situation can no longer buy what Israel has been selling for decades, which is that Israel is the victim and it's doing what it is doing for "security" or "defensive" measures. It's bullshit that doesn't measure up to reality.

You like to scream bomb and murder. That's fine. You have every right to be like that. You can call Israel violating human rights and killing innocent people, "defending itself", when in the reality is otherwise. The point here is that many in the U.S. government are heavily influenced by extremist right wing Israeli policies that actually hurt Americans. When a decision is made by the U.S. government that sacrifices what's best for Americans (and humanity) in favour of a foreign country that is continuously violating the rights of another group, then people who support those decisions should be scrutinized. Americans are starting to wake up in regards to the stupid decisions made by their so-called representatives, like the $50 billion package Netanyahu is requesting from American taxpayers to pay to Israel, instead of fixing the crumpling infrastructure and fixing problems like the Flint, Michigan water crisis. It's happening, Yosemite Sam. They see that their government is not doing the right thing, so they're taking matters into their own hands. For example, this is huge: On Jan. 12th, the United Methodist Church in the US chose to divest from five Israeli banks implicated in Israel’s illegal “settlements,”. Across the pond, in Europe, the French telecom giant, Orange, is pulling out of Israel, effective this month.

That's not the point that was made, since it's not true. These are select individuals and a small minority of Muslims. I hope you see the point that not all Muslims are the same. That it's stupid to see Muslims as a caricature. An extremist who screams allah-akbar. I also hope you understand that there are similar extremists and wackos in other religions like Christianity and Judaism, who like to interpret their religions in various ways.

Saudi has a pretty strong lobby as well, but you can't wiggle yourself out of this one. AIPAC is for Israel. It's an Israeli lobby group. They are all Israeli Firsters. I'm okay with this. There are many lobby groups. It's part of the game. I just think it's important for people to know why and how their so-called representatives choose to vote. It's not always about the best interest of the people they are supposed to be representing.

AIPAC is all about Israel. It's not about America. Politicians such as Mark Kirk are the leading prostitutes for this Israeli lobby group. He receives his marching orders from AIPAC/Likud/Sheldon Adelson because they pay his bills. He's not alone. There are many other politicians who have become mouthpieces for the Israeli lobby (registered in America!). On the other hand, the always growing BDS movement has become a real problem for the Israeli lobby. They are injecting the truth into the narrative and people are beginning to see the truth. It's all starting on the campuses, where students have better access to information and have more time to look into what is really happening. It's only a matter of time before the pressure from the ordinary citizens and from around the world will be too much for the lobbyists to maintain their power over the narrative of the Middle East.

U.S., yes. Israel is their largest welfare recipient, and this is due to the powerful Israeli lobby in the United States. The rules are there. Both Canada and U.S. do not recognize the Israeli settlements to be legal. Now it becomes about pressure from the public. Until the public begins to voice their opinion, it will be business as usual. We are already seeing a shift in public opinion. Unfortunately, North America is a little slower than the rest of the world in understanding the violations Israel continues to commit against the Palestinians. The rest of the world, including Europe are ahead and they are the ones we're seeing making changes in how they respond to the situation. It's only a matter of time.

There is this myth that Muslims don't criticize ISIS or radicalism enough or that it's seldom that it happens. But the opposite is the truth. Take these Muslims in London who speak out against the radical Muslims, who are actually afraid to go close to mosques, where other Muslims would criticize them https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6R20IslSfk

Terrorists are them other guys. Both the United States and Canada do not support the illegal land annexation and the occupation by Israel. The rules are there, both internationally and at the federal levels. So it's just a matter of influencing the governments to take a stand on them. So far, Israel/Zionism has been able to have the stronger influence. However, that's changing and it is only a matter of time where the excuses will have to stop. Similar to Apartheid South Africa and how it was the international community that pushed the Western government to oppose Apartheid South Africa.

There are extreme Muslim imams and then there are extreme Christian pastors. They both have supporters, but of course, in reality, they don't reflect the thoughts and ideas of the majority. Imagine the uproar by the Shady's and Argus' if this guy was a Muslim: Link (I dare you to get through the whole video)

And in what interpretation of bible or old testament is it okay to be gay? https://carm.org/bible-homosexuality The Bible doesn't speak of homosexuality very often. But when it does, it condemns it as sin. Let's take a look. Leviticus 18:22, "You shall not lie with a male as one lies with a female; it is an abomination."1 Leviticus 20:13, "If there is a man who lies with a male as those who lie with a woman, both of them have committed a detestable act; they shall surely be put to death. Their bloodguiltness is upon them." 1 Corinthians 6:9-10, "Or do you not know that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, 10 nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, shall inherit the kingdom of God." Romans 1:26-28, "For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, 27 and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error. 28 And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper." Why do you try so hard to sell to everyone that EVERY Muslim follows the EXACT same thing? It's a shallow and superficial way of thinking that all Muslims think and believe the same thing. If a group of Muslims have tried to bring in Sharia law (which actually partly follows the literal teachings of the bible) into Canada, it doesn't mean that they represent the thinking of all Muslims. It also doesn't mean that they want to bring in everything that Sharia Law teaches or that they want to bring in what the Saudis believe or the Iranians believe or the Pakistanis believe. This is like a group of Christians who want to bring in the teachings of the bible into the law does not represent those who have a Christian background.

Where? You are once again saying something without showing proof and engaging in slander and defamation. We have been over this before and you have continuously failed miserably in proving what is in your head vs what is reality.

I already addressed that. These are women who have been elected in Muslim countries. So has the hatred and bigotry shifted from Muslims to only Middle Eastern Muslims? "Lol"?

Where do you get that these Syrian refugees hate women? Or Muslim men hate women? You expect people to debate your bigoted opinions that you're not able to back up with proof. Are some of you people so out of touch with reality that you're going to blame the actions of a group of guys on a religion and then try to convince people that's how Muslims are? This happened in Vancouver: Nicole went shopping in the same area again, this time with a friend. Walking down the street, she suddenly spotted the same “instructor” she had seen the day before; a young, nicely-dressed Asian guy, accompanied by two new students. Nicole assumed he’d recognize her from the other day and steer clear, but instead he sent one of his presumed students to talk to her. What Nicole describes next is downright disturbing: “He kept trying to talk, and he got close to me and my friend. I asked him to please just leave us alone, but he wouldn’t go away. He started getting really aggressive and got up in our faces, as if he were trying to start a bar fight with a man. He raised his voice and shouted ‘What, do you own this street corner?!’ I repeatedly asked him to please leave us alone, please go away, but he wouldn’t. He even threatened to follow us, shouting ‘maybe I need to go that way, maybe I’ll follow you that way.’ He just wasn’t backing down. It was very obvious that in his teachings, he was taught not to take no for an answer. I’ve changed my route home, I don’t want to walk around in my own neighborhood anymore.” As troubling as Nicole’s experience is, it is far from unique. From our research, many pick up artists (or PUAs) run bootcamps in this neighborhood, and accost dozens, if not hundreds of women in a day. Harassment of women happens on a daily basis. Muslim guys don't have a monopoly. Last year, Julien Blanc, one of the world’s most famous PUAs, was banned from several countries, including Canada, for posting videos online in which he walked down the streets in Tokyo and shoved women’s faces into his crotch. Julien claims that the videos do not reflect his teachings and were a misguided attempt at humour. OMG. WHITE ANGLO-SAXON GUYS ARE RAPISTS!

Are you talking Middle East or countries where the population is majority Muslim? Because these women have been elected leaders of their countries: Tansu Çiller, elected prime minister of Turkey, 1993-1996 Benazir Bhutto, elected prime minister of Pakistan 1988-1990, 1993-1996 Mame Madior Boye, appointed prime minister of Senegal, 2001-2002. Megawati Sukarnoputri, elected president of Indonesia, 2001-2004 Khaleda Zia, elected prime minister of Bangladesh, 1991-1996 and 2001-2006 Sheikh Hasina, elected prime minister of Bangladesh 2009- Roza Otunbayeva, president of Kyrgyzstan, 2010- 2011 Atifete Jahjaga, elected president of Kosovo 2011-

Once again, you are saying things that don't exist. At least not outside of your head and in reality. I have never generalized Jews. Some of the leading advocates for human rights for Palestinians are Jews. Don't confuse yourself and others when describing Zionism. Being anti-Zionist is not anti-Jewish. Zionism, unfortunately, is an ideal that is okay with trampling all over another person's human rights for its own gains. If there is a Zionist that is not okay with the treatment of Palestinians and the land stolen from Palestinians (as according to international law), then they are certainly an anomaly.

I don't have a percentage, but I do know it's an overwhelming majority, especially the ones who have moved to Western countries, who are loud and clear about their position against a group like ISIS. There are many topics that we can talk about and every person is different, so I'm not about to announce, as a non-Muslim, exactly what I am speaking against here, which is; It's stupid to generalize Muslims or any other large group with a diverse background, based on the action of a select few.

Nitpicking and posting from the Dailymail will not prove that this is what Muslims stand for. It's easy to find stupid comments made by people and groups. I can post thousands of outrageous comments made by groups that represent Christians, Jews, whites, blacks, browns. You continue to try to sell your position from a perspective that has already been discussed. The perspective that a select few idiots somehow represent all Muslims. Again, have a look at this video and perhaps seek to watch the documentary to see what majority of Muslims think about the stupid people you think represent Islam.

This is the reality of what most Muslims feel about the extremists who preach extremism:

Everyone but Israel is supporting the Iran nuclear deal and the sanctions that have been lifted. Are you saying that Canada should follow Israel instead of the international community (Including the U.S.)?

What does that have to do with what we're discussing. I am not blaming all conflicts on Western actions. Everyone knows that ISIS would not have formed if U.S. and the rest of the crusaders had not intervened in Iraq. We all know that there would be a lot less resentment towards the West and it would have been a lot more difficult for ISIS and other terrorist groups to recruit people, if the West did not have such a terrible track record when it comes to killing innocent civilians, torturing and raping people and their backing of dictators throughout the world. You have the option of being honest about the cause and effect, or go into superficial mode and turn into an extreme sports fan, cheering for and showing unconditional love for your team.