religion phobic

But…the people you’re talking about there are extremists. It is important to retain that distinction.

I live in a very diverse area, the most diverse in Wales apparently, and have done for a long time. If there is extremism, it is well hidden and not welcomed by any of the general population of the area. My Muslim neighbours have no more to do with extremism than I do.

@randomusername03

"and in the same way that i have no respect for people who wish to enforce gender identity on me"

What does 'forcing gender identity' on you mean?

"i have no respect for people who wish to enforce fundementalist islam on me"

Like literally who has ever done that? I live within walking distance of 4 mosques. The only thing that's problematic about this is getting a parking space at the Lidl next to the mosque before Friday prayers.

Tell us more about all these terrible Muslims you are in close proximity to.

The two are very very different. The vast majority of Muslims are not extremists. So to outright label yourself as Islamophobic, as opposed to anti-extremism is very worrying indeed.

Tbh I don't think there's any adjective that make Islamaphobic an acceptable way to describe yourself. It isn't a term people should be proud to be associated with.

Exactly!!

Yes, fundamentalist, meaning extreme Islam.

The op says it in her original post. "Is it bad to say I'm a fundamentalist Islamaphobic"!

I don't think that's ok.

As usual, the progressives are doing the guilt tripping.

Who gets to decide what's 'Islamaphobic' - you? I don't see anything, on this thread, that aligns with discrimination. She is referring to extremism, which you already know. If you're happy with that practice, don't expect the rest of us to be.

I think it's not ok I say you're islamaphobic, no matter how you dress it up.

But the OP is not disagreeing with you. She does not need to learn about the religion to be enlightened by it as she is not criticising it. She’s just talking about the extremist views!

And I don't think bigotry or zealotry is confined to religion.

Yes. you get fruitloop atheists too. Less so agnostics I have to admit.

She knows how the religion makes her feel. I would think that's good enough for the poster.we are still allowed to have these opinions, so long as they stay within the law.

And yet you keep saying

• you aren’t making generalisations
• you aren’t going on about Islam

It sounds like you’ve made yourself an expert on the subject without actually doing proper reading and research.

FGM isn't religious. Circumcision is though.

@SerendipityJane

I totally agree: I've always felt that having to rely on an external force for moral guidance actually undermines morality. If I do something because "God" tells me to do it as opposed to because I know it's the right thing to do it points to weakness, lack of conviction and lack of moral intelligence.

I could never be a person of faith because I can't swallow the contradictions that are sold to me which require me to suspend my critical thinking and logic (resurrection anyone?). And that's before you get to the hypocrisy and the treatment of women by most mainstream faiths.

That said, I do think some of the infrastructure of organised religion can at best be extremely helpful. When I look at the good that has been done in society by various religious organisations and the spiritual support which these faith organisations provide to people I'm sometimes envious.

And I don't think bigotry or zealotry is confined to religion.

That's all very well.

But if you need to be told to be nice to one another by an imaginary friend, then it doesn't say much to conscience.

I'm an atheist but my perception is that moderate religion is often a force for marginal good: it encourages people to be compassionate and respectful, supports a sense of community etc. I've never been a person of faith but I can appreciate that the Church or England, for example, has been behind a lot of social good in the UK and I know moderate British Muslims who have an enormous sense of obligation towards others which stems from their faith. I'm very much live and let live for people of moderate faith and in some cases slightly in awe.

But religious zealotry or fundamentalism is overwhelmingly negative and usually correlates with stupidity or mental illness.

I don't think religious zealotry is all that different from non-religious zealotry, though. A fundamentalist Muslim is not a million miles away from an antivaxxer or a right wing nutjob. In both cases these are people who have allowed their belief in something to override their ability to think critically and behave rationally. But its the obsessive commitment to the cause that's the problem as opposed to the flavour of the faith.

Then we agree.

I'm not referring to a single faith, I'm referring to what I find to be acts of religious extremism in general.

Not in the name of Christianity though!

I think we may be referring to different faiths - there's more than one that likes genital mutilation.