Musings on biblical studies, politics, religion, ethics, human nature, tidbits from science
A former jihadist is interviewed for his views on the question “What makes vulnerable young Muslims prone to being recruited by groups like the Islamic State?” It seems a silly question to many. After all, they’re Muslims. They believe in a holy book that commands them to kill, kill, kill. What else is there to know? If a … Continue reading “How Young People Become Radicalised”
Tashfeen Malik and Syed Rizwan Farooq fit the pattern perfectly. I’ve been posting the findings of serious research into what leads someone to radicalize and kill for some time now and will continue to do so as I read and learn more. Meanwhile assertions that the Quran made them do it defy the fundamentals how the world … Continue reading “The San Bernardino Terrorists — So Very Predictable, So UNpredictable”
From The Daily Beast, by Maajid Nawaz, Paris Proves We’ll Never Kill Enough Jihadists to Stop Terror . . . . So why does this keep happening, and on this scale? The answer is not a comfortable one. Jihadist terrorism is alive and kicking. And though we must continue to put terrorists on the back foot by … Continue reading “So why does this keep happening, and on this scale?”
Previous posts in this series looking at Friction: How Radicalization Happens to Them and Us by Clark McCauley and Sophia Moskalenko: How Terrorists Are Made: 1 – Personal Grievance How Terrorists Are Made: 2 — Group Grievance Starting at the Top: Rejecting Violence Place: Russia Year: 1875 Adrian Mikhailov was a talented Russian orphan who … Continue reading “Slippery Slope to Terrorism”
Sam Harris and Jerry Coyne have in a recent Youtube discussion and publication both explained how they studied religion, read lots of theology, before undertaking their anti-theistic critiques. Harris begins by informing us that in his twenties he read a wide range of religious traditions; Coyne tells readers he read much theology as he “dug … Continue reading “Studying Religious Beliefs Without Understanding How Humans Work”
I have just finished watching both Sam Harris and Maajid Nawaz discuss their book Islam and the Future of Tolerance and was pleasantly surprised. I don’t recall reading anything by Maajid Nawaz but my introduction to Sam Harris was his 2005 book The End of Faith, a book that disturbed me for reasons I explained … Continue reading “Sam Harris modifies his views on Islam — Encouraging step forward”
Sometimes the most slap-dash of posts get the most attention and my recent post, Atheism, Cults and Toxicity, is the latest instance. At this moment it has garnered 111 comments and today Heather Hastie of Heather’s Homilies has responded to it with Is New Atheism a Cult? with another 72 responses at this moment. The irony behind all … Continue reading “New Atheism, Tribalism and Ignorance of How Religion and Humans Work”
Freelance science writer Dan Jones recently responded to a supporter of Sam Harris outraged over Dan’s criticism of Harris’s popular writings on the role religion plays in terrorist violence. Dan Jones’ concluding remarks strike a chord with me: (One final thing: I’ve been reading atheists like Dawkins, and older, more philosophical ones like Bertrand Russell and AJ Ayer, since the … Continue reading “Where the New Atheists Have Let Us Down”
I’m looking here at a thesis on the nature of religious belief, Religious Credence is Not Factual Belief, by Neil Van Leeuwen that was published in the journal Cognition last year. The author has also made his article publicly available on academia.edu. A commenter brought the article to my attention in the context of disagreements over … Continue reading “Religious Credence is Not Factual Belief: 1″
Recent discussions here arising from responses to Dan Jones’ article, “On how to be completely wrong about radicalisation: the curious case of Jerry Coyne” and another post Who are the true Muslims in these scenarios? I have been spurred into fast tracking and updating reading on the psychology of religious belief, extremism, ISIS in particular, terrorism more generally, and … Continue reading “Exploring the Links between Beliefs and Behaviour”
There are interesting parallels between the processes that lead some people to join both religious cults and terrorist groups. If you once joined a cult you will very likely recognize some of the pathway others have walked to become members of a group responsible for violent terror attacks. If you joined a religious cult you knew that others thought you were … Continue reading “How Religious Cults and Terrorist Groups Attract Members”
ABC’s RN had the good sense to play a repeat of a Hindsight program on Anzac Day — a lecture by Robert Manne disussing the direct link between Gallipoli and the Armenian Genocide. It’s talks like these that remind me why I’m an internationalist, not a nationalist. No transcript or podcast of the talk, but … Continue reading “Gallipoli and the Armenian Genocide”