There is a lot of emotion around lately, never a thing conducive to rational thought .... yes i've heard some generally denigratory comment on muslims over the last year and a half, it's coming from mouth-breathers though, every society has those, and it seems the internet society got a triple batch, or maybe we just notice them more here
You did not make this a moderated thread ... that shows a respect for free speech that is in itself worthy of respect imho ..... many others set themselves up to censor their fellows, including this one - #Subject-53083
Always i have read that the arabs kept civilisation alive between the fall of the roman empire and the beginnings of the renaissance, right through the dark ages .... probably that should be 'muslims' not 'arabs', as the persians were quite educated and advanced, likely other peoples as well .... projects like the libraries at Damascus, Baghdad, Istfahan [sp?], these were well above anything in the christian world for a long period .... i think that is fairly generally recognised - mind you i have no formal education at all, just picked things up from reading, but the few things of which i had heard under the What Is Taught categories in the header, i had never heard those things taught ... of course most of it i never heard of before period
You might find this interesting, the page here entitled AL ANDALUS - memory.loc.gov ... can't post a link direct as the site doesn't permit that .... it's brief, but touches on the fact that the moros operated in the iberian peninsula a very liberal society, much more tolerant and inclusive than those of other societies nearby, both at that time and for many years following .... there is a lot on the net in spanish on this period, i've read some, it's all in the same general vein ..... so i think maybe, the academic and scientific superiority of the muslims at that time came about through their superior political science, relative to others in the period ... they largely did not do forced conversions to their faith, unlike the christians of the reconquista, they opened themselves up to trade in both goods and ideas from all willing and able to deal with them .... it was trade that drove science really, as technological advancement needs markets for fuel, and the moros were good at trade, in their most successful period they did not stifle it through any unreasonable xenophobic paranoia, whether inspired by interpretation of scripture or otherwise
'Political science' is probably too grand a term, i was just interested in trading viewpoints with muslims, ideally one or more resident in an islamic country .... it's exotic, and interesting, that's all, and it seems to me that more contact is a good idea generally, between peoples ..... cheers |
