What It’s Like to Live in the Capital of the ‘Caliphate’

[onager]

Standard Disclaimer: posted in the Atheists & Agnostics Group, a safe haven. Void where prohibited by law, either sharia, canon or Alleged God's:

Interesting look from the inside of the ISIS paradise-on-earth:

What It’s Like to Live in the Capital of the ‘Caliphate’

By Marwan Hisham, Foreign Policy Magazine, 18 hours ago

...These lecture series begin with an explanation of the Muslim statement of faith: “There is no God but Allah, and Mohammed is the messenger of Allah.” They end with an explanation of specific details regarding the Islamic State’s interpretation of Islam, such as the special rules pertaining to women during their menstrual periods. By the time they “graduate,” students are indoctrinated into the entirety of the Islamic State’s ideology...

The severity of the Islamic State’s punishments seem to depend completely on the whims of the members inflicting them. In one particular lesson, Abu Fatima seemed particularly angry.

“By God the Glorious, not a single smoker will pass my exam and get a voucher that earns him the money of mujahideen,” he screamed. “Nor a cuckold who lets his wife go out unveiled!”

Of course, Xians are nothing like these infidel Off-Brand believers...

The Islamic State always describes any hardship or new restriction as resulting from the sins of those afflicted, and the Friday sermon that followed this decision was no exception. “People disobey God, and as such God inflicts upon them suffering,” a fighter preached.

Whoops!

http://news.yahoo.com/live-capital-caliphate-215748491.html

[trotsky]

1. Just don't forget, ISIS has nothing to do with religion.

[progressoid]

2. Yeah, its not like it has Islamic in the name or anything.

[onager]

3. Of course not! Neither did the Inquistion...

Or the Crusades. Or the Philadelphia Bible Wars. They were all about politics. Or economics. Or real estate disputes. Or something. But NEVER about religion, which only does good things.

And those modest, 'umble people who practice Other Ways Of Knowing...psychic powers, tarot-card reading etc. - why, you just can't IMAGINE one of those ethereal folk getting involved with an uber-Catholic mom, in a plot that leads to the senseless murder of an 18-yr-old.

Well, not completely senseless. He did break up with her daughter after Taking Her Virginity, which of course made the girl a Ruined Woman. Religion doesn't have anything to do with those attitudes, either. That's just culture!

Pro-tip, Ms. Martinez - next time, use your Other Ways Of Knowing to figure out your visitor is wearing a wire, and the cops outside are hearing every word:

http://murderpedia.org/female.C/c/cisneros-dora.htm

[RussBLib]

4. ISIS is like a cancer

metastasizing
wallowing in blood and death
in the name of god

that shit just ain't gonna fly in America

[onager]

5. Update: ISIS Fighters Suffer Pay Cut

OK, all you opportunists can cancel your passport applications. According to the Fiscal Times, ISIS just imposed a 50% pay cut on all of its selfless, not-interested-in-the-material-world members. From the highest imams and other Spiritual Leaders down to the lowest grunts and falafel-carriers.

One possible reason: an air strike last week vaporized their biggest bank and sent a bunch of cash up in smoke.

Aymenn Jawad al-Tamimi, a researcher with the Middle East Forum, is compiling an archive of ISIS administrative documents and recently uncovered a missive from ISIS leadership announcing the reduction in pay. After several paragraphs citing Islamic teaching that calls for worshippers to dedicate their wealth to jihad, it concludes:

“So on account of the exceptional circumstances the Islamic State is facing, it has been decided to reduce the salaries that are paid to all mujahideen by half, and it is not allowed for anyone to be exempted from this decision, whatever his position. Let it be known that work will continue to distribute provisions twice every month as usual. And God is the guarantor of success.”

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/isis-terrorists-big-pay-cut-194600760.html

[RussBLib]

6. "God is the guarantor of success" hahaha

What fools.

No matter how much they trust in god, I'm sure they still look both ways before crossing the street.

[DetlefK]

7. "God is the guarantor of success" is the core-part of their belief.

"Why are we winning? God is on our side. How do we know whether God is on our side? Well, we are winning."

Military victories are divine proof that they are God's army. Of course, military defeats also happen, but don't worry: Allah is the root of everything! This lost battle came from Allah himself! Praise Allah! (Not kidding. This is their actual belief.)

[RussBLib]

8. such an abdication of personal responsibility

If you win, it's Allah's will.
If you lose, it's Allah's will.
Why bother?

I don't think these countries will ever get out of poverty and despair until they start to shed that mental straightjacket they've been lugging around for centuries now. Are the countries of Asia and the Middle East some of the poorest because of Allah's will?

Which are the most successful countries on Earth? Those who rely on science and humanity and not those who cannot see past their holy books.

[DetlefK]

9. I've been reading lately on how the scientific method developed...

The mindset in ancient times and in the Middle-Ages was absolutely weird by today's standards. The answer to everything was "It's God's will."

The indoctrination was deep-rooted with millennia of cultural background. Doubting the teachings wasn't merely outlawed: It was incomprehensible and unthinkable. If you doubted the religious teachings, you were an idiot.

Example:
The ancient Greeks had philosophy, the ancient Romans had engineering and architecture. So, why was their technological advancement so slow compared to the most recent 500 years?
Because they simply didn't have the mindset for systematic experiments. They had trial&error for individual problems but rarely did experiments on the wider laws of nature. Because the thought of it was just too weird and outlandish.

It took 400 years (~1300 - ~1700), several historical coincidents and a few mad geniuses until we finally ended up with the scientific method.





The problem isn't religion per se. The problem is the mindset of belief, because it keeps you from checking whether something is correct or incorrect.

In that respect, the fanatic religious mindset in the current Middle-East reminds me a lot of the fanatic religious mindset of christian medieval Europe. I think, the muslim world needs more critical thinkers, a search, a desire to explore the uncomfortable and not to retreat into the safe confines of the belief. What the muslim world needs is a mental revolution, a Renaissance.