Found On Fb, Thought It Interesting. Is It Correct Or Not ?

[SparklyKid]

http://tinypic.com/r/2u6e2i8/9

[naomi24]

Jim, if stating that vast swathes of the middle east, north Africa, and parts of Europe were conquered by Islam within about 100 years of its invention is being deliberately selective, then I’m deliberately selective – because that’s what happened. No spin necessary.

[jim360]

The selectivity is from clearly implying it's a phenomenon either unique to Islam, or at least dominated by it, whereas in fact (a) most religions have been at it when they get the chance, and (b) it's not even a particularly religious thing anyway. That's what Empires do: they conquer.

So why specifically focus on Islam?

[SparklyKid]

Interesting comments, but, shopping beckons,lol.

[Ellipsis]

> If it's accurate how can it be misleading? That makes no sense.

It makes a lot of sense to a scientists, lawyers, etc ...

[SparklyKid]

Because Jim, currently islam is by far the most barbaric.

[naomi24]

Jim, // it's not even a particularly religious thing anyway//

In the case of Islam, don't you believe it.

//So why specifically focus on Islam? //

Because that is what confronts us now.

[jim360]

Quite, Ellipsis.

Any argument that relies on only presenting half the story, however accurate that half may be, is clearly misleading because of what it omits.

For example, why was Egypt Christian? It wasn't before, being of course... well, Egyptian. Then the Romans came along and first conquered the country before then converting it to Christianity later.

Meanwhile, the religious balance in Pakistan, at least in the modern sense, was determined not so much by Muslims entering and then invading the place, but by the aftermath of British withdrawal from and partition of India. I would have thought omitting that part of the story is also rather obviously misleading.

[naomi24]

Jim, //Any argument that relies on only presenting half the story//

What's the other half of the story?

[jim360]

I guess maybe if you'd read on you'd have found one example of a "half of the story" that was missing, ie the reason Egypt was Christian.

The history of nations in the image is started, deliberately, from well after those nations began, making it appear as if Islam was the first aggressive conquest of those countries. It was not; ergo, the story being told is far from complete.

[naomi24]

Jim, //making it appear as if Islam was the first aggressive conquest of those countries.//

That isn't suggested at all. You've made that up.

[Ellipsis]

"The truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth" comes to mind ...

[naomi24]

Indeed Ellipsis. It's the truth.

[jim360]

I think it's a very clear and obvious inference from the statement "Egypt was Christian" that, by implication, it was only the arrival of Islam that disrupted this. It was not.

As woofgang said right from the start, the same is basically true of Christianity, and in the New World in particular it was brutally true. For whatever reason, that part of the story is left out. Almost as if there's a deliberate political agenda against Islam wherever it exists.

[Ellipsis]

Naomi, it will not be possible to have a rational debate with you on this topic if you genuinely believe that accurate information cannot be misleading.

[woofgang]

Shall I sling in the Spanish inquisition here?

[jim360]

"It's the truth."

But it's not the whole truth. And there is the point. Why isn't the whole truth being presented? Because, of course, it shows that Islam is far from unique in its role in world history. That's inconvenient for people who want to make Islam the enemy, rather than the rather painful truth, that people in general, whenever they wield power, are the problem.

[dannyk13]

Clicking on the link brings up a blank screen.

[naomi24]

There's rather a lot of 'yeah but, no but', going on here. Gosh, such a simple set of facts too. :o)

[jim360]

I get that too, dannyk, but I often find that on tinypic. The solution is to click the "zoom" option, then it reopens the image.

[ummmm]

Danny - click on zoom on the left hand side.