From: Samantha Atkins (samantha@objectent.com)
Date: Sat Aug 24 2002 - 00:08:19 MDT
Technotranscendence wrote:
> On Friday, August 23, 2002 12:22 AM Samantha Atkins
> samantha@objectent.com
>
>>Are you aware that the source of the "Chronicles" articles is
>>the Rockford Institute which is fundamentally a Christian fundie
>>or near-fundie "think tank"?
>
>
> I'm aware. When the analysis is good or interesting, I don't care about
> the backgrounds of the analysts.
>
But the selection of facts and even what is presented as facts
that the analysis hinges upon is itself suspect in such a case
and requires careful independent verification. That they say
things you want to hear or that are consistent with your beliefs
is not an indication that the source is trustworthy.
> Also, the Rockford Institute leans more toward Catholicism and Eastern
> Orthodox Christianity -- not Christian fundamentalism per se. I don't
> dismiss people or their thought because they're Christians -- even
> though I'm a strict atheist.
>
Check out some of their other offerings and you will see that
there is not a lot of differentiation here. They have a
Christian religion as the way and the cure for all of society's
ills agenda. That is utterly consistent with a highly developed
subtext of denigrating other religions and countries dominated
by those religions as much as possible.
>
>>Perhaps we should take these
>>articles with more than a few grains of salt.
>>
>>http://www.chroniclesmagazine.org/About.htm
>
>
> I take everything with a grain of salt. I don't know, really, of
> anything I read where I say, "I'm in 100% agreement with that." This
> goes even for my own writings given enough time.:)
>
Sure.
> In this particular case, I find Trifkovic's views on Europe and the
> Middle East interesting. He's no idiot and has a long experience in the
> region. It appears he is not plugged into power as are many other
> experts in foreign affairs. Yes, he has an agenda, but it's plain to
> see what it is -- Christendom vs. Islam and forestall a decline of the
> West. Of course, he has a particular view of what these are that is at
> odds with most other people, since he's a paleoconservative.
>
Yeah, I had the suspicion that the first agenda predominates and
the second is defined in such a way that the West is assumed
Christian or its goodness utterly depended on Christianity.
He is definitely not one to give a balance view of a
multicultural world and how it may peaceably co-exist and evolve.
> On this article, did you find Trifkovic's views on Saudi Arabia --
> basically that it IS the model of an Islamic state -- to be invalid?
>
Having been in Saudi Arabia (albeit 17 years ago) for a few
months, and working with many Saudi professionals, I found his
presentation extremely biased and prejudicial. Not that there
are not very bad fundamental premises and many horrendous actual
occurrences in S.A. There are. But the country and its culture
is not remotely as rabid or as monotone as he presents it. At
least it wasn't when I was there. It may have gone much more
extreme and volatile since then.
- samantha
> Cheers!
>
> Dan
> http://uweb.superlink.net/neptune/MyWorksBySubject.html
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