posted 01-22-2002 02:37            

From: The Times:

NOW that Taleban rule is over in Mullah Omar’s former southern stronghold, it is not only televisions, kites and razors which have begun to emerge.

Visible again, too, are men with their ashna, or beloveds: young boys they have groomed for sex.

Kandahar’s Pashtuns have been notorious for their homosexuality for centuries, particularly their fondness for naive young boys. Before the Taleban arrived in 1994, the streets were filled with teenagers and their sugar daddies, flaunting their relationship.

...locals tell you that birds fly over the city using only one wing, the other covering their posterior ...

Read the rest Here.

While I understand that the "training" of young boys has been a tradition of many religions for centuries (at least), this still comes as a surprise. Of course, not as much as a surprise as the Taliban actually banning it. Considering the Taliban's track record on human rights (specifically womens) in general, its amazing to see that they considered this unsavory.

posted 01-22-2002 05:27            

quote:

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Originally posted by marcel:
As for the morality issue, who really cares?

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posted 01-22-2002 07:53         

quote:

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Originally posted by Clme:
You really must be careful with the "who really cares" statements... it always turns out that someone does.

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posted 01-22-2002 10:58            

quote:

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Originally posted by marcel:
The people who REALLY care are active in the Peace Corps or performing missionary work for their church, some form of ACTION.

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Like flying jetliners into the symbolic heart of your oppressors?

posted 01-22-2002 12:06         

quote:

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Originally posted by joshy:
Like flying jetliners into the symbolic heart of your oppressors?

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Greetings Joshy.
No, they would be terrorists.

posted 01-22-2002 16:41            

quote:

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Originally posted by marcel:
The people who REALLY care are active in the Peace Corps or performing missionary work for their church, some form of ACTION. Anyone else is blowing smoke, usually from his or her hypocritical ivory tower.

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quote:

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No, they would be terrorists.

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Other than the killing of many people at once, how is this different?

Plus, since killing people is sometimes allowed, how do we gauge the exceptions?

The fact of the matter is that there are people who do care. They do fight for for their right to do whatever they believe in. They aren't as numerous as the apathetic members of a society, or even the as numerous as the people who will do whatever they need to just so they dont get stoned to death. They do, however exist.

Just because I dont agree with any of them means nothing.

My previous statement stands: Be careful when you say "who cares", because someone out there does.

By the way: Sodomy with young boys was an accepted practice in many cultures until several hundred years ago. Chew on that.

My only real concern is if this is happening against their will, or if they are resorting to it for money to feed their families or something. Hell, maybe there is actually love there and we should all just move along. This story doesn't really say much else than "Gee, they're fucking 16 year olds in the ass" and "The natives are restless".

-Chris

posted 01-22-2002 16:47         

I'm just wondering is there any religion relatively big (at least 10000 members or perhaps what the gov terms a religion and not a cult) that openly approves of gay people?

oh well live and let live unless this starts a new aids epidemic or something like marcel said.

later
trey

posted 01-22-2002 18:31            

quote:

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Originally posted by treyh37:
it seems to me a lot of the big religions don't like gays, I could be wrong though.

I'm just wondering is there any religion relatively big (at least 10000 members or perhaps what the gov terms a religion and not a cult) that openly approves of gay people?

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Buddhism
Taoism
Unitarian Universalism
Atheism/Agnosticism (depending on your viewpoint, may or may not be a religion)
Satanism
Deism
Wicca
Druidism

Basically any religion that is NOT forked from Judaism (Protestantism, Catholicism, Judaism, Islam, and all variations of the above) is probably apathetic about homosexuality. Early Hebrew law was anti-gay, and so by extension are all of its offshoots. Fundamentally, all the Mideastern religions have the same values, it's just the priorities and extent to which they emphasize these values.

posted 01-23-2002 02:14            

quote:

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Originally posted by marcel:
...Sounds like an open door for future AIDS cases...

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Wouldn't that be an open back door?

posted 01-24-2002 21:10            

Therefor, a religion's converting power, like any other part of an initially societally-specific part of culture, can initially be directly correlated with the society which originated it.

And a society's power, at least up until contemporary times, almost always directly related to its population.