It's both. The big problem in Thailand is the extremist Muslim insugency in the southern portion of the country. It was hoped that the general would be able to stop the violence... but he hasn't.

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au...1-1702,00.html

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...092700154.html

I agree that there are extremists in many religions. All one has to do is look at the Crusades, or the Salem Witch trials.... hence, why I'm not a fan of organized religion.

However, and maybe Opi can chime in here... what is one to think about Islam when the final words of Mohammed to his disciples was, "I was ordered to fight all men until they say, "There is no god but Allah."

and, in Qur'an :39 it says, "Fight them until all opposition ends and all submit to Allah." and "So fight them until there is no more Fitnah (disbelief --non Muslims) and all submit to the religion of Allah alone."

and in Ishaq :587 "Our onslaught will not be a weak and faltering affair. We shall fight as long as we live. We will fight until you turn Islam, humbly seeking refuge. We will fight not caring whom we meet. We will fight whether we destroy ancient holdings or newly gotten gains. We have mutilated every opponent. We have driven them violenty before us at the command of Allah and Islam. We will fight unti our religion is established. And we will plunder them, for they must suffer disgrace."

Perhaps I'm not reading these quotes correctly, but it doesn't seem like a faith of tolerance and peace. Opi.. could you please clarify?

I'm starting to seriously doubt religion as a motive anyway, but not ready to rule it out either. apperatly people had the day off work and went to have their pictures taken with soldiers, etc. One guy kept something as a souverior. I read that since that King has been reigning, there have been like 7 coups, and he is now more popular than ever, and probably more powerful than some extremeist groups in his country. Go Thailand!!! I hope they will be okay through this.:(

I read both of those articles. Neither suggests or supports a claim that "the big problem in Thailand is the extremist Muslim insurgency in the southern portion of the country." (Your words, my emphasis.) The closest either gets to that is this from The Australian:

More than 1400 people have died in the conflict in Thailand's far south since early 2004. The violence has been blamed on Malay separatism, religious extremism and organised crime in the border region.

Thaksin Shinawatra, the former premier ousted in last week's coup, has been accused of inflaming tensions there with heavy-handed tactics.

There have been hopes the Muslim army chief who led the coup, General Sonthi Boonyaratglin, may be able to ease the unrest.

Notice that coupled with "religious extremism" is "Malay separatism" (and organized crime). Notice also that nowhere does the article say that this was the reason for the coup.

I'm not saying religious extremism and Malay separatism haven't been a significant problem in Thailand, nor am I denying that many thought the former Prime Minister fanned the flames of the problem. But that's just a part -- and I think in the grand scheme of things, a relatively minor part -- of a much, much bigger picture that led to the coup.

As I said earlier, the popularity of the King -- the longest serving head of state in the world -- and the reverence with which he is viewed in Thailand really can't be overstated.

That song's from Chess?!?! I've never seen Chess - have seen a song performed here or there. I had NO idea! I've never understood all the lyrics, so I never realized what they were talking about. Learn somethin' new...

Lady, this thread is about Thailand, not about Islam.

Second, I hope that you picked up an actual translated Quran and quoted, because there are alot of false verses attributed to the Quran online. I, however, will not be verifying any of these verses for you IF YOU DID GET THEM ONLINE.

Third, even if you got it from the hardcopy of the Quran, you can't just read a passage and run with it. You have to put into context (meaning reading the verses before it, and after it).

Fourth, it seems like you are set to blame this coup on extremist islamist fundamentalist terrorists or whatever word is in right now. You can if you want to, but it will become obvious that you have don't have a clue about world politics.

No, Opi, it's about Thailand and Islam because more than 1700 people have been killed and another 2500 injured on both sides since the Muslim insurgency began in the southern portion of the country January of 2004. Thaksin Shinawatra was thrown out of power last week mainly because of the way he dealt with those Muslim uprisings, among other things. I agree he was a poor leader.. but I'm not pleased at a military coup (btw.. this is Thailand's 18th) and the quick demise of democracy in that country since the coup. The hope was that a Muslim leader would cool the troubles in the Muslim dominated southern portion of the country, but it hasn't.

The reason that I asked you about the quotes is because, like the Bible and other religious books, they can be interpreted many different ways. I'm trying to understand how these words do not urge those of who practice the Islamic faith to demand everyone to convert through force, if necessary. This directly relates to the topic at hand since Thailand is going through a Buddhist/Muslim struggle. There has been a rash of bombings on Buddhist temples, attacks on schools, and police stations.

Would you therefore, be kind enough to explain them to me and put them in context?

Did I misquote what Mohammed said in his final words to his disciples? Did he not say, "I was ordered to fight all men until they say, "There is no god but Allah."

I'm struggling to understand Islam and how it can be a religion of peace. Maybe you can provide some insight.

Well, I hope if the Crusades and the Salem Witch trials are going to be taken into account in critiquing organized religion, charitable works, hospitals, care of the poor, the establishment of educational institutions and the role of organized religion in social movements like the abolitionist and civil rights movements, just to name a few contributions of organized religion, will also get some consideration

You keep saying this, but so far I haven't read a single thing anywhere other than your own posts to back this assertion up. Most articles I have read and most reports I have heard about the coup barely mention the insurgency if they mention it at all, giving much higher priority to a list of other grievances against Thaksin. While I agree that Sonthi was named to head the army in the hopes that he could do better than Thaksin in dealing with the insurgency, I think if you look at the reasons for protests against Thaksin in the last few years, you'll see quite a few things on the "grievance list" ahead of his handling of the insurgency.

(And of course, to treat it as a "Muslim" insurgency may be quite misleading, as it may be as much an ethnic Malay vs. Thai dispute, much how the Catholic-Protestant distinction in Ireland is as much or more about native Irish vs. British as it is about religion).

So what is your source for saying "Thaksin Shinawatra was thrown out of power last week mainly because of the way he dealt with those Muslim uprisings"?

I think blueangel is a little confused about reality... and maybe spelling. Malay Insurgency doesn't equal Muslim Insuregency, rather the "Malay Insurgency" is about Malay seperatism/independence movement that happens to include some fighters that are Muslim... as well as Bhuddists and Christians.

blueangel is also missing the point about some of the attacks on Bhuddist temples - in that, while yes some have been done by Muslim fanatics, others have been done by Communists, militant Christians, and rival Bhuddist sects.

I think you've been reading too much jihad watch. I've copied and pasted the passages you provided, and the top hits (by a few pages) are anti-Islamic websites. This is a redflag that you are going to all the wrong sites. So maybe that's the reason for this sad confusion about Islam. If you are still struggling with the concept of Islam, either a) talk to a practicing muslim b) talk to an Imam c) take a class at a local university. Your long rants are wasting my time.

You want me to explain the entire religion to you in a thread about THAILAND??? :confused:

I'm a little confused... where are these alleged "long rants?" Why will you not answer my questions? Can you not explain these passages to me? Can you not explain what Muhammed meant in his last words to his disciples?

If you are not well studied in Islam, then perhaps someone else here of the Islamic faith would care to answer them?

There is no reason why she needs to defend or interpret anything about her religion on Greekchat. If you are truly interested in understanding Islam, I'm sure there are sources or experts you can consult.

You know when you get a cut and then the cut turns into a scab and you just want to pick at it?

This thread reminds me of that.

Don't question her or you'll get reported!

And I agree it's stupid - it would be like somebody asking me to explain Catholicism in a post about Tanzania.