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today: IDEAS ON WESTERN TOLERANCE
AND THE INTOLERANT SIDES OF ISLAM

Elsa's Creativity Space - Update
   Hello again,    

Something has been brewing in me over the past couple of years: my ideas on Western tolerance and the intolerant sides of Islam.

In writing to you about this, I'm going out on a limb more than in anything else I've done. When it comes to writing, or even saying, anything not 100% positive about the Muslim religion, I've felt a sense of threat. Anger. Rage. And even the threat of violence. If you don't like my poetry or music, or my ideas about dogs, there's no threat.

I'm a college prof, teaching subjects such as valuing diversity - which also means exploring which diversities one might legitimately not value. Both Muslim and non-Muslim students have their antennae out for anything that could be seen as remotely critical of the Muslim religion. Almost unanimously they hold: One must never offend a religion. One must be tolerant of everything. One must not judge.

That's not my position. My position: it's vital to get all the information possible, and to think as clearly and as well as possible. Not thinking clearly and well - for me, that's a major weakness.

If you're Muslim, I'd especially like you to listen, really listen. Maybe you already agree with much of what I'll be saying; maybe not. I'd like you to think it over. That goes for everyone else as well, whatever your religion or non-religion.

I'll say a bit more. But in case you're impatient to have a look at my ideas, here's the link to Islam and Western tolerance, seen through my curious eyes.

Over the past few years, I've found myself repeatedly paying attention to Islam. The huge fuss about the Danish cartoon triggered me to start writing. It didn't make sense to me that Muslims were protesting en masse against this small cartoon instead of, say, the genital mutilation of 75,000,000 Muslim women, the thousands of Muslims murdered by other Muslims, etc.

The exploration of Islam tied in with another ongoing exploration: of something about the West that I see as a major weakness - the widespread negativity about critical thinking. I've seen this over and over in students - for example, in a rigid refusal to explore. All opinions are equal, most hold, despite huge evidence to the contrary.

My two interests came together, as I found I was not supposed to be thinking about Islam.

Once again, here's my exploration of the tolerant West and the intolerant sides of Islam.

I'd love to have you come along on my journey, and also to comment.

As always, all the best,

Elsa
April 20, 2008

P.S. Now that this project has been completed, I'm back to music. Much more on that, in the not-too-distant future.

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Elsa's Creativity Emporium - Updates
Arpil 20, 2008

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Welcome to Elsa's Creativity Space

"New! Elsas Creativity Space Update explores:
Western Tolerance and Intolerant Sides of Islam.
Areas: Definition of Tolerance, Definition for Terrorism,
Islam Basic Beliefs.

Elsas Creativity Space,
an all-round creativity site
exploring moments, memory, thoughts
through spoken word, song, story,
idea pieces, rap, journal, reflection, dreams, more.
Elsas Creativity Space.

Elsas creativity space is
Elsas creativity emporium is
Elsas creativity place

Gertrude Stein said, almost a century ago, a rose is a rose is a rose.

Much easier to say that, than to say
Elsas creativity space is
Elsas creativity space.

But just as a rose is a rose is a rose,
Elsas creativity space is
Elsas creativity space.

One could even go on to say that
a rose is a rose by any other name.

Likewise, one could hold that
Elsas creativity space is
Elsas creativity space
by any other name.

And many humans might not even notice if,
instead of
Elsas creativity space
I wrote
Elsas creativity place
or
Elsas creativity site.

Most humans would just register that it's
Elsas creativity something or other.

And it is.
But there's more.

The name is a signal.

This is
Elsas creativity place
Elsas creativity space.

i am not calling mayday. This is not a distress signal.

It's a hello signal, come see me, notice me.

Hello,
it's Elsas creativity space
Elsas creativity place
calling all search engines
to find me on my island
deserted but fertile
enchanted but isolated
creative and creating but too too alone.

Who will help me through my dark?
Who will help me make my mark?
Who will help me build my ark?
I cannot do it alone.

I'm calling to people
but strangely it's not people
I am turning to for help.

It's the web
the world wide web.

I'm calling hoping the web will hear that
Elsas creativity place
Elsas creativity space
is calling, calling, calling with longing and hope.

signed,

Elsa

Zee

Not-me

Sexe-Tete

All of me

including my early childhood self, Dely,
who took the name Elsa

July 9 , 2006
somewhat revised, February 6, 2007

copyright © Elsa Schieder, 2007 - all rights reserved

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