Why shouldn’t they travel via Jordan, Mohannad?

http://www.saudiembassy.net/2006News/News/IslDetail.asp?cIndex=5846

Lets fix sectarian violence. Lets take away hate. Lets build more madrasas…

======= Excerpt from the above link
One of the most serious challenges facing the Muslim nation today is Islamic education, which enemies want to distance from its pillars, the King said. He stated that a position on Islamic education must be spelled out based on a reasonable view of Islam.

“Tommy, youre obviously a simpleton. Is it possible to ever attain peace when your neighbors despise you?”

Roba, what a coincidence, it could have been me who asked that. Thing is, though, that we don’t actually despise you. What we despise, being your neighbors, is that huge wild dog you’ve got living along our fence, who keeps sh*tting on us. Get rid of the dog, for heavens’ sakes.

And Mohannad, we fly (some of us) via Jordan, because the flights to the Far East are cheaper, because no European airline will fly to the Far East via Tel Aviv. If you want to fly to the Far East from here, you can either fly El Al, which is prohibitively expensive for many, or fly to Europe first (i.e., go backwards for a few hours) and then wait for a connection (in Athens, the closest hub, the best connection to Bangkok is an 8 hour wait). The reason for this, is that flights from Europe can fly over places like Iraq and Iran without being shot out of the sky. Those countries threatened the European airlines against flying East from Tel Aviv, so they stopped doing it – they didn’t want to be shot, funnily enough.

Royal Jordanian and Egyptair are the cheap alternatives for Israelis wishing to fly to the Far East, because, like it or not, we’re actually at peace with you guys. That is because we actually believe that your armies would rather prevent incursions from your territories onto ours, than risk an all-out war – and not because we are fooled, for a minute, into thinking that you people actually like us. How unfortunate, though, that Lebanon has been unwilling, or unable, to do the same.

Anonymous Israeli,

My friend, the problem really is an unfortunate set of events that has forced the Arab/muslim world to live with a set of social values that are outdated. They are a society that primarily congregates based on relegion. For example, In the US, there are many communities (both online and real-life), for people that are interested in crossword puzzeles. This community is a new surrogate congregation that fills the role of a church. These geeky people probably have strong views about crossword puzzles, perhaps emotions that are no stronger than a muslim that studies in a madrasa. The problem is, the muslims want to kill and engage in Jihad. The geeks want to write computer programs. Big difference.

When you have a society that nurtures its sons and daughters with knowledge, you have a country filled with intellectuals, inventors, doctors, biologists, Molecular bio-physicists ..etc. This phenomenon is self sustaining. The Arab world DOES NOT have this. They need a makeover for their society, with passion for knowledge as the pillars of their families. Not the pillars of Islam. You can raise a child to fall in love with anything, art for example. I am good friends with a really successful american inventor. He has been in love with rockets all his life. He builds them, and flies them up into the sky. His kids are into rockets. He is part of a club that meets regularly. He socializes with their families. He has no need for a relegious congregation to fill his social needs as a human being.

Saudi Arabia has plenty of oil money. Why dont they gradudate PhDs in Physics? Because they have more screwed-in-the-head professors researching the Holy Quran, than ones that research computer algorithms or particle physics. To the rest of the moderate world, this whole obsession with relegion is ancient, primitive, crude, subhuman and outright disgusting. I’d would be happier if the Saudis were poorer, and we see a few more american billionares. Atleast, these people wont fund terroirst organizations in Baluchistan or Kashmir. They buy microlights and gliders.

Killing innocent people is simply unacceptable, by Israel or the US. It should be stopped. Having said that, I will always stand by Israel to defend herself.

I am not a Jew. I was raised Hindu, but I am a strict Atheist. I am not American, I was born in India.

I desperately want to belv that the Muslims in the middle east are just like any community around the world. They like a good meal, and love Baaklava (like me). But, they are different.

And Ahmedinejad. What a joke? I would rather die in shame, than call a freak like him as the head of my country. Even George Bush is better than him.

With all respect to you, I don’t think you are in place to judge the social values of our community, we have values and we are proud of them. Some societies don’t have values at all and that’s why they have a high rated crime (Like America). Islam has enhanced these values and made them applicable and that’s why Muslims had great scientists and minds. We still have great minds and the most of your scientists are from Arab/Islamic origins. But the media which is mostly ruled by Jewish gives the world this horrible idea about Islam. And I think that no one should judge anyone else’s religion based on the media.

Saudi Arabia is not the ideal example of Islam. Unfortunately, none of the Islamic countries are. Our Islamic world is ruled by people who are unfaithful to their people actually they are faithful to America and her spoiled daughter Israel. America is after our oil, first Gulf, now Iraq and then Sudan.

“I’d would be happier if the Saudis were poorer, and we see a few more American billionaires. At least, these people won’t fund terrorist organizations in Baluchistan or Kashmir. They buy micro lights and gliders”
Well, I can give you a very good example of that, McDonalds and Starbucks give money to Israel (and this is a well-known fact ) in order to buy weapons and kill children like what happened in Qana few days ago. If weapons are called “micro lights and gliders” these days please let me know.

“Move all the Palenstinian refugees to Jordan (20 %), and the rest to Saudi Arabia. Give back the land to Israel.”
Give BACK the land to Israel?! Since when the land is Israel’s. This is history my friend, Israel took our land and kicks the Palestinians out.

Jumana,

Why not? I am a victim of those Islamic terrorist attacks, just as you are a victim of Israel.

I grew up in this suburb.

Dont forget, that, for every ANGRY Arab, there are a billion Hindus that HATE Islamic fundamentalism.

Dont forget, that for every Malaysian muslim that oppresses the chinese minority, there’s a really smart, hard-working chinese engineer designing computer chips in india.

My friend, you need to peek outside of your little Israel-Palestine love affair and see just HOW MANY OTHER people are being affected by this Islamic Jihad.

You must know that Islam is great. Islam orders us to be good with others.
Islam asks us to take care of women and children. It breaks my heart (and every real muslim’s heart) to hear about some crazy group kills innocent people in the name of Islam.
Do you know that some of these groups are Jewish, and they act this way to convince you people that Islam is horrible?

Jason, I suggest that YOU start to accept other point of views. Try to understand our ideas, our religion (our real religion). Be flexible, don’t talk to us just to convince us. I think it’s a good idea to start LISTENNING to us.

Very interesting reading. My take is that we are not only having a clash of civiliazations, but of civiliazation modernity. As an American, I truly believe that until MODERATE muslims (I hope they exist?) stand up and take back their religion, their governments, etc, we will be killing each other. Right now, moderate muslims accept, or silently protest, anything against the us, the west, isreal, etc. I personally take offense to this fact, leading me to accept, or silently protest, anything that removes power from islamic fanatisism, UN sanctions, wars, etc. I am much happier to have destruction of “the middle east” then in New York and Washington as we did on 9-11. We need a moderate muslim leader; ghandi-esq, martin luther king-esq, to stand up for their society and unite moderates to truly deal with the west on a solution. Do you think king asad from syria will change the status quo? Do you think the oil rich prices from saudi will? Maybe we should hold out hope for iran’s president?

As an American, I agree, Bush isn’t our perfect leader for peace…but after 9-11, he is the perfect leader for war. He has kept Americans safe, which is his #1 priority.

In 2008, lets get a neo-CLINTON back in there, and get someone from the islamic world to step up!!!

Matt