When religion takes over

Here's how our "friends" the Saudis handle their rape victims:

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5itRFLIdKb8OnJpiQRpQl1tHq0oGAD8SUG8581

Let's not hold our breath waiting for any global discussion on human rights in Saudi Arabia.

Not atheists, not Muslims, not Buddhists, not Wiccans, not followers of Shinto. We've heard it all from you before, repeatedly.

:sarcasm:

and (a) places the religion ahead of humanity; and (b) uses the religion as a weapon to keep itself in power.

Non-religious ideologies can at times be used in the same way.

Christianity on its own: great! Christianity placed ahead of humanity, and used as a method of state control = the Inquisition; burning of heretics at the stake under various British governments; and, on a less powerful level, the poisonous influence of the Christian Right.

Islam on its own: great! Islam placed ahead of humanity, and used as a method of state control = the Taliban; the oppressive governments of Saudi Arabia and Iran; and the terrorism of Al Quaeda.

.....

Socialism on its own: great! Socialism placed ahead of humanity, and used as a method of state control = Stalinism, Maoism, etc.


.........

Almost any ideology on its own (with a few exceptions): great! Ideology placed ahead of humanity and used as a method of state control = evil!

Stalin and Mao and Pol Pot happens when irrational power hungry leaders take over with very bad ideas about, socity, and economics.

while they WERE atheists, did not commit their acts in the name of atheism, unlike the christians and muslims who do them in the name of their god.

Stalin and Pol Pot were educated by christians...Stalin studying to be a priest of the Russian Orthodox church. You have to wonder what lessons they learned there.

cover Mao and Stalin at least as their rejection of religion has a very religious dogmatic doctrinal faith based tone - not too unlike some atheists posts on DU.

have the money and social status to be any more than a pastoral priest. He wanted to rise to be a patriarch of that church. (Lots of perks there, including political...at that time).

And no, I see no 'religious' tone to their positions. They did what they did in the name of the state with no gods...of any type...required.

These were theocratic leaders in their own ways - with communism being treated as a religion. "The Thoughts of Chairman Mao" became a sort of Bible in China for a time.

"sort of a bible" to some on DU.

Same can be said about Kim in North Korea.