Just practicing their "religious customs". No problem, right?

Typical, anti-religion crap, G.E. Linking this horrendous act of superstition to "religion" may bolster whatever anti-religion sentiments you apparently have, but it is still nonsense. In WW2, Nazis killed millions of people. Ten to one you wouldn't equate what they did, in the name of the state and the party, to all governments or political systems.

Burning witches is about religion. Specifically, it is about Christianity. You can't rewrite history just because you don't like what it says about your religion.

Note the huge pile of trash they burned her on. So, it's ok to pollute the earth and throw your trash everywhere Guinians, but don't you dare practice witchcraft.

She was probably just intelligent and intuitive and idiots don't understand intelligence.

The crowd of people are equally to blame for not stopping it. Of course we are talking about a people who throw their trash in the streets and burn people on it so....

Somehow this doesn't supprise me. Low education, low living standards and probably very little expectations of your lot in life getting better.

This is why we don't live in a theocracy. We tried that during pilgrim times, and Salem became rather infamous for something quite like this. It's sad to see that religion has become something that's used to inspire hatred and terror, even in these times that we live in. We can only hope for justice in this case, but it seems the mob doesn't exactly believe in such things.

Stoney, agree 100%. this is - again - UNEDUCATED people doing what the THINK they are suppose to - sorry - anti Christians or anti - faith folks - i have visited a few of these countries and WOW are they back several centuries. the majority of people roam the streets all day looking for things to do - this also happens in half if not more than half the "villages" in the middle east. typically the female population does attend some type of schooling but the "men" who rule the regions do not. kind of sums it up. Same problems in the U S to a certain extent - the uneduacated who pick a leader of the gang follow that leaders rules - they simply know no better and want to fit in. if the leader of the pack is - in our way of life or in our way of rational, logical, normally peaceful thinking - deemed crazy by us ..... this is what you get. Actions the normal thinking person do not understand. these folks are typically tend to the violent side as this gets them "credibility" by people fearing them, thus they follow.

Just give them guns and it will be just like the south side of Chicago!! Only warmer!!

Liam -

I agree with your assertions, but fail to see what that has to do with this story? Are you trying to show that any race can be barbaric? I think you're preaching to the choir, amigo.

ok that was 50 plus years ago and the texas incident is just that an isolated incident perputrated by two idiots. the point is what? we burn people alive because we think they are witches? by the way if you want to make this - for some reason - a racial issue - in Ghana the folks there are all black citizens. waterboarding has nothing to do with this - if you are talking about "torture' of some kind - theree are other ways to torture believe me waterboarding is nothing compared to the tortures other countries use. i like/respect Mr. McClain very much but i do not agree with him on this.

Not surprised the public is not cooperating with the police, since they're the ones that did it.

I would hesitate to blame this on uneducated people. The people who orchestrated the genocide in Bosnia were highly educated. They were driven by nationalism instead of religion, but they were nonetheless highly educated murderers.

If so many took pictures it should be easy to find out who is responsible. I would suggest that the town police don't want the same mob fate to happen to them or their families so they are saying "sure we'll do everything we ca to catch the killers", and the international community will hear no more about it.

I certainly hope that Amnesty International or some other human rights organization steps in and helps to educate these people and calm the hysteria.

This is what happens when western religious cultures are imposed on a group of people....They take things to the extreme. Before you rip my statement apart please note I did not specify which religion.

stoned: You have an excellent point. Based on the last election and threats of the unions in this country, that picture is a peak into the future of the US.

Steve -

With all of the violent atrocities currently being committed by Muslims, you've got the nerve to reference "western" religious cultures. If you lived in a Muslim country you would be targeted for death because of your sexual orientation.

Burning them seems to be the way to rid a country of witches, it worked for America.

Only thing that comes to mind is "ignorant backwards f*cks".

And folks, you CAN NOT even attempt to compare witch burnings with racial violence in the US. They are burning witches because their ignorant asses believe in magic and think they really do cast spells. Lynchings in the South were done by white racist pigs who hated a skin color and wanted to intimidate. They didn't believe the black men were out there casting spells. You also can not compare torturing a witch with waterboarding a terrorist. They didn't pour water over a guy's face because they thought it was fun. How does waterboarding compare to shoving a red hot iron rod up someone's ass?

@witchrunner

If this is what's coming to the US, shouldn't you already be running?

Guess where I'm never going to go on vacation.

Religion, superstition and a cheating husband run amok!

Ignorance, hatred, and bigotry. Formula for disaster.

@ witchrunner;

So, it's the employers who are the saints of the U.S.A. now. I wonder how many millions of their employees have become wealthy now that they've been laid off -- because their jobs have been sent overseas so the employers can get away with paying less than $2 an hour while forcing the workers to work more than 12 hours every day....

Meanwhile YOU get to enjoy that McMansion and vacation in Europe every year.

Dick-2100935 - It didn't work for America...we are still here..lol.. This is truly a sad story of injustice... i hope they find the ones responsible. May she rest in peace in the Summerland

Education goes a long freaking way....its amazing what untruths your learn about when you have a mind that can process such information.

commento508

control others much? classic control freak

I wonder how many billions in aid our government sends to these ignorant, backward Neanderthals?

GeneralEclectic

Just practicing their "religious customs". No problem, right?

Exactly GE...religion at its finest...history is rife with similar examples and yet even today, the invisible man in the sky that never answers is still around....people apparently are no smarter now.

liam,

Funny how you bought up the race card. Did you see the picture? Everyone there is BLACK. Funny indeed how you use the race card.

DoWhatsRIght - USA

Stoney, agree 100%. this is - again - UNEDUCATED people doing what the THINK they are suppose to

Do what...today the problem is with the EDUCATED ones who still believe that crap....

My God - will the human species EVER begin to mature and evolve?

For every one tiny step forward we take - there are hundreds of giant steps backwards.

I hope the individuals responsible for this are arrested, but I'm not holding out much hope for that.

If I were God...I would admit my mistake and start over.

If people actually used Christ as a model, you wouldn't get murders. Religion isn't God; it is man-made. Some people will use anything to wield power. I do not believe God is happy.

Somehow this doesn't supprise me. Low education, low living standards and probably very little expectations of your lot in life getting better.

The necessary elements required for the conception and birth of all religions.

This is all true, the lady did indeed practice witchcraft. Not long after her burning, they found the unicorn that she had been hiding in the back shed, and there was a full jar of bat's gizzards in the drawer of her desk.

This isn't about religion. This is about idea of what someone thinks is right or wrong. I believe the liberal media has that affect on the people here in the US. They are willing to "burn" anyone who doesn't agree with their beliefs.

None of this is based upon biblical teachings, so please stop thinking "religion = Christianity". That is brainwashing done by the media. Second, I think looking into that boy's relatives where you should first look for in the line of suspects. Probably someone that the boy knew or friends of the parents.

Crazy whacked out crap like this happens even in supposedly modern/educated countries because of religion. Take Saudi Arabia where the "religious police" wouldn't allow school girls to flee their burning school because they forgot their head scarves inside. They sent the girls back inside the building and locked the gates on them. Some other men tried to help but were beat off by the religious police who told them, "It is sinful to help them!" So they stood there and watched the girls die, screaming to be let out as they burned and died from the smoke.

2little2late - there will be no changing your mind about belief or faith in God. i get that. anytime some backward thinking person or a crazy person who states God told him to do something terrible comes along - it is ALL religion and ALL people of faith who are crazy because most of all - they have a different opinion than you. i get that as well. the difference is i defend your right to your opinion and i am not going to judge you on it or call you names or lump you into a group that say .... kills or rapes/ tortures folks then admits they are atheist. i am sure you are a fine person who wants good for people and does the best you can to live your life in peace. we both want the same things, just go about the thought process a different way. i have many non-believing friends, all races, all genders, gay and straight. makes me no difference - a good person is a good person. the folks depicted in this story - believe they did the right thing to this woman - WE rational, logical thinking people do not. they know no better for whatever reason - we do. Peace be with you today.

Carryingconcealed

I wonder how many billions in aid our government sends to these ignorant, backward Neanderthals?

It takes all of 5 seconds of getting off your ass and looking it up yourself instead of just random snide remarks.

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2797.htm

Do I need to read it to you as well or can you handle that part yourself?

When I went to work on the US Embassy in Port Moresby we passed by a tribe of cannibals twice a day. We were told never venture out alone. A message that was well taken.

Ok this is just wrong, Whoever did this to this women should get the death penalty. How dare anyone to this to anyone. I hope she was taken quickly. Jesus wouldcndemn this no matter what her religion was this is a hatred and Jesus was about love so this poor women that's gota be the worst way to go. I hope those that did this are presecuted and get the death penalty asap. The ones watching suprised they didn't try to stop it unless they were conserned for there safety but this is jsut no excuse for these monsters to do this She deserves the loving attention not these ugly ugly more then I can express ugly basterds who did this.

JK-4363698

When did this article become about the middle east?

Religious fundamentalism is not exclusive to any one sect. Push one for any other and you get radicals.

The push on this island happens to be of one particular nature, western religion, not Muslim.

Can't have witches running around. Especially in a country practicing Voodoo and shrinking heads, that just won't do.

Carryingconcealed,

The USA funds the Republicans more than the USA funds New Guinea.

Where are the ACLU, Jesse Jackson, and Al Sharpton ?

Nah, they would probably consider this "a minor incident in another country".

The sad thing is, the tribesmen probably carried out these burnings in the name of Christianity.. they are almost all at least nominally Christian there (although clearly they do not understand the first thing about their professed religion).

commento cornholio...

Chris,

"It takes all of 5 seconds of getting off your ass and looking it up yourself instead of just random snide remarks."

"Do I need to read it to you as well or can you handle that part yourself?"

You always make me laugh with your smart ass remarks. And you provide sources too! A rare combination 'round here.

2Little and GE - I believe you have it backwards....this was people practicing their anti-religion.

Where are the ACLU...

What the hell does the American Civil Liberties Union have to do with what has happened in another country?

The union workers at Hostess DID NOT ask for more money - they simply wanted to keep their current pay. The controlling parties for years ignored out-dated equipment and sales models, allowing the company to become less and less profitable. The union workers had already accepted pay cuts and benefit cost increases in the years previously. The CEOs that caused the problems, however, got their bonuses, pay raises and golden parachutes. Keep buying into the Republican model - remember, the less money the workers make, the less they have to spend. Then the rich will have to start feeding off each other, as there will no longer be a middle class to fill the trough. And really - what does this have to do with the subject of the article? Oh, right - Obama haters make EVERYTHING about Obama.

Cin- and this has something to do with burning witches in new guinea?

RE: patter123

In your remark (if someone else has not already corrected it) about burning Witches being part of Christianity.

In a sense, you are correct, but you are using a Jewish teaching (from the bible's book of Exodos) that is used by those that still use the Old Testament instead of the (Christian) New Testament scriptures.

Many "religions" persecute those of other beliefs. And some still will not accept The Naturals (Witche's / Wicca) as a religion.

CIN,

We don't blame Obama for the witchburning....lol.

the picture with this news article shows the faces, and some entire persons. Surely in that town the authorities can pinpoint some participants to this murder. So police chief, mayor etc. DO YOUR JOBS, and stop with the histrionics.

patter123

Typical, anti-religion crap, G.E. Linking this horrendous act of superstition to "religion" may bolster whatever anti-religion sentiments you apparently have, but it is still nonsense. In WW2, Nazis killed millions of people. Ten to one you wouldn't equate what they did, in the name of the state and the party, to all governments or political systems.

Burning witches is about religion. Specifically, it is about Christianity. You can't rewrite history just because you don't like what it says about your religion.

#1.5 -Fri Feb 8, 2013 5:27 AM MST

Patter, your anti-Christian bias put a wicked lie in your mouth. "Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live" was an Old Testament law. It has nothing whatsoever to do with Christianity, per-se. The Gospel of Jesus Christ makes plain that we are no longer under any obligation to the old Mosaic Law. We have been given a new standard of behavior, just one: "Love one another as I have loved you." This necessarily excludes the burning of witches.

Just because some liars -- people in that respect just like yourself, for example, -- do un-Christian things does not make those things "Christian" things to do, Patter. A Christian, correctly identified, is someone who follows the example of Jesus Christ. But you can't find fault with that.

"By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, that ye have love one for another."

The burning of witches is not in any way characteristic of Christians, Patter. It is a practice that has its origins in a Jewish law.

The Jewish law serves only one purpose: to show that we are guilty of sin and need to be redeemed; that is, it serves to show that we are already beyond the point at which we could be found innocent by obeying the law, since we are already guilty of sinning against it. No future act of obedience to a law can change this present fact. This is why we are in need of the free gift of salvation that belongs to those who believe that Christ died for them and rose from the dead -- just that: FAITH IN ETERNAL LIFE, and that alone.

How is it that you have found space to blame Christians for a Jewish law and yet said nothing about Jews? Would I be far wrong if I suggested that you fear one group but not the other? And why is that? Could it be that the group you do not fear is not known for violent responses to false, unflattering characterizations of them?

cin: The other unions agreed to adjustment in their contracts. Could management have done a better job? Undoubtedly! Yet, the facts remain that the last chance for the company to keep going was for the union to agree to the concessions. Since they didn't, they obviously decided that they'd rather be unemployed and put the other 13,500 on the unemployment line rather than settling for the lesser pay. That's one of the problems with the powers the unions have. The individual members have no say. No one had the option of working for less and thus, keeping their job. In states where union membership is mandatory, this is just plain wrong. It's also why companies have been moving to right-to-work states. In those states, the vast majority of workers choose not to become unionized.

Your efforts to blame the repubs is pretty lame. Where are all the libs who could have jumped in and purchased Hostess and run it the way you and they claim that you want it run? Do you really think that all the libs in Congress and elsewhere who have money made it using the Socialism model? Of course not! They make their money the same way that the repubs make their money. It's just rather than being honest about it, they talk the great game of equalization to get people like you to vote for them. They don't believe it and they are well aware that they are hypocrites, but as long as there are so many of you who fall for the line and it gets them elected, then they'll continue to talk that way. You don't see them sharing their wealth that much, do you? Heck, until Obama decided to run for the WH his charitable contributions were a mere $2,500/yr. And that's with income of over $400k. That's why they want to spread everyone else' wealth around, but not their own.

Chris from Yucaipa said: "It takes all of 5 seconds of getting off your ass and looking it up yourself instead of just random snide remarks."

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2797.htm

"Do I need to read it to you as well or can you handle that part yourself?"

The question was asked rhetorically, moron. We all know we send aid but no one, except you apparently, really gives a sh!t how much.

However, I'm glad to see that ignoramuses still attract one another . . . right, Troy?

@bow2me - Yes, but they were all crazy because of either mental illness or those darn "bath salts" so that's different.

ANYWAY, the population is close to 70% Christian for whomever said that this wouldn't happen if the country was Christian. The population is just very diverse ethnically and culturally. It appears there is a mixture of new religions and traditional beliefs and still tribal conflicts. Australia is it main line of financial support.

Poor young woman. I wonder what the 6 year old neighbor died from. Dengue fever and malaria and contagious diseases are a big problem.

Read the CIA Factbook- very interesting.

I am so glad you are here, speaking your faith. We often hear the Muslims do so as the murder people in god's name. Many preachers come on here and disregard the hateful laws of the Old testament as "Metaphors that are to mean that judgement is for "After" someone dies. But you are a "True Believer" so it seems you want to do god's work for him. first of all that is the crime of Heresy since you are assuming the place of God.

Second, you obviously do not know the true origins of the Old Testament or how we came to have them here, influencing the people of the 21sy century. These are HEBREW writings and laws that began when Abraham was a powerful, rich man who , as all rich, powerful people, back then, had their own military force at their disposal. Abraham was different though. he professed to have only one God, and he was god's representative here on Earth. All other's fell to the sword.

Abraham was ejected from the lands of Canaan by the Assyrians and soon became slaves to Egypt. While in slavery, they kept the faith that God had promised the lands of Canaan, so Moses came along to self- fulfill the prophesy. In order to do so he had to form a cohesive body of people that he could muster as a fighting force to conquer the path to Canaan, God's promised land.As the foundation of the laws of Moses, he wrote the laws as "God's Laws", and to break God's laws was a sin. The wages of sin is death, so to break the laws of Moses was to be condemned to die.

To the fanatical zealots of religion today, these laws are referred to as "Holy Scripture"

These same laws were taught tot he indigent people of Papua New Guinea. The Religious Demographics are 99 percent Christain, roman Catholic. The same people that brought over a thousand years of religious tyranny. If you combine this with the fact that their culture is Canibals and head hunters, then the result is a mixmatch of cultures that becomes a kind of Hybrid.

The culture has a custom. They will accuse a rival from another village of being a Witch as a reason kill and eat them. Everyone knows this but the practice is not as common as it was 50 years ago. People want to avoid speaking about the practices because it is a source of meat where meat is scarce.

Research it , if you do not believe me. The Witch is killed and then eaten. I would bet that this happened in this case after the smoke cleared.

Religion is the culprit, but the need for protein is the cause. There is very little to eat in the Jungle and the soil is poor for growing crops. The region is harsh and hard to survive.

So if you are thinking about a vacation over there and someone ask you if you believe in Magic, run for it.

But in the case of the religious zealots, perhaps you could go there as a missionary to teach them your brand of god's love.

The most common error as I see it on these post is people always try to relate the story to our culture. Over there, a witch is a source of food.

Lazarus

Lee,

This has nothing to do with American politics.

Tex,

Neither does Obama.

You sound bitter Lee, maybe you should leave the USA.

What's wrong, panda -- do you happen to believe that "legitimate rapes" never end in pregnancy because "a woman's body has defenses for that"?

no i don't believe that. i could come back with some stupid retort like "what's wrong quacked, angry over the fact you didn't get your obama phone, or obama gas, or obama car payment!" but that wouldn't add anything.

it's funny with all the assumptions, it's like some people want to show their stupidity. do you believe that bills must be passed in order for people to find out what's in them, such as nancy pelosi does? i could go on, but i have a life. just because one person in the party mentions something like that doesn't mean everyone from that party believes that. in fact, the GOP were the first people to confront Akin over those comments.

i bet it's going to scare the hell out of you when you find out i'm mainly libertarian (republican in economics and libertarian in everything else) and i don't believe in religion...

i agree that mother nature and the sun are what causes the changing of the climate. you might want to speak with obama on those drone strikes. anti-civil rights? not sure which party you are talking about there.

might have well been an uneducated person in a region where women are treated as lesser who burned her. what about all those people who stood around and watched? you're telling me they were all "bible-thumping" republicans? not one democrat or other party affiliation?

also you need to read, "Sorcery has traditionally been countered by sorcery in Papuan New Guinean culture. But responses to sorcery allegations have become increasingly violent in recent years." it wasn't because she "dared to be different."

Yes, you are "libertarian" -- and you are an anti-Climate Change Science Right-wing Conservative.

And it is so nice (and so very predictable) of you to make such a valiant attempt to blame everyone but yourself for the problems that you help create. "Blind followers of the Liberals"? How about blind followers of the Conservatives. here's a hint for you: Climate Change is not caused by only the sun and "Mother Nature" any more than obesity is caused by only shoveling food into your mouth.

Civil rights, yes. It was the GOP that tried to keep blacks and "Injuns" from being allowed to vote. It is the GOP that is trying to FORCE women to be the subservient slaves that the majority of the Fundamentalist Bible-thumpers say they should be. It is the GOP that is working to block any REAL health-care reform, as well as the Violence Against Women Act. Yes, CIVIL RIGHTS.

p.s., "Libertarian" is just another word for "it's ok for me to do it whenever I want to, but you better have a damn good reason for doing it". Just another Right-wing Conservative BS political "platform".

i guess you didn't see the article on a UN report that was not officially released, but leaked, showing that solar activity has a much more profound effect on climate change than previously thought.

i guess i should school you on history of the civil rights then. the democratic party was the one who was against the 13th amendment, but the radical republican controlled congress was able to pass it. the democrats set up a filibuster to stop the passage of the civil rights act of 1964. in the end the bill passed the house with 80% republican and only 61% democrat support, and in the senate with 82% republican and 69% democrat support. martin luther king jr even identified himself as republican. look up history and you will see many more instances of these. the democrats have latched on to the low-informed, low-income minorities as of late in order to gain more votes. that's the main change in minority support going from republican to democrat. and what better way to keep the votes coming than to keep them low-informed, and low-income!

the new healthcare law is now estimated to cost over 7 million people their current healthcare provided by their employers. that's a gov't cbo estimate, which means it will most likely cost more people than that. the average cost of healthcare for a family of 4 right now is $14k and the cbo just released that the average under the new law for a family of 4 will be around $20k... also, why do you think congress added that they are exempt to the law? surely that should have raised a red flag in your mind?

you seem to take the titles of the bills and think that's what they are about. but i can't say i'm surprised, that seems to be the trend in congress these days. take a look at the recent fiscal cliff deal: a 150 page document voted on 3 mins after it hit the senate floor. damn, they read fast! look more deeply into those recent "fairness" bills and you will find that over 50% of them are not about equal pay or discrimination. they are filled with spending pork which is why both republicans and independents rejected them.

and your definition of libertarian is off. it's about freedom and liberty and smaller gov't control. but you wouldn't know anything about that since you have identified yourself with a party that has a history of oppression and wants to force you to join unions and pay union dues. for the party of so-called "choice" you don't offer much choice other than your way or the highway.

and i'm done arguing with you. all you've done is spit the same hypocritical arguements the so-called mainstream "news" agencies have been saying over the past couple of years. stop the ridiculous spending now!

Pandas-

The right wing conservative party of the past was the Democratic party. Lincoln and MLK were Republicans, true. But the poles were reversed with the 'Southern Strategy' and all of the ultraconservative 'dixiecrats' jumped ship and joined the GOP. The Democrats that fought against the 13th amendment are todays Republicans and other right wing conservatives.

you do know the "southern strategy" has been proven a myth over and over by all sides of the political spectrum, right? many southern democrats switched to the republican party, not because the republican party was pandering to racism, but because of a giant economic change in the south that shied away from farming and agriculture to more suburban industrialization, leaving more suburbanites wealthy and thus they started identifying more with the republican party.

after research, many people even found out that most of the dixiecrats actually reestablished themselves in the democratic party once their movement was dwindling down. you're right that the parties have changed, but they didn't switch. that is something the left has created to cover for their downright appalling handling of civil rights in the past. the republicans that voted for the 13th amendment of the past are not completely aligned with the republican party of today, but they were by no means the democrats of today. if that was true, then the democrats and their mainstream media would be touting it every election just like how they tout that the republican party only cares about the wealthy.

it's thinking like yours that distorts the history of the US and will eventually lead to more people not knowing where they came from and how they got here. unfortunately, people will believe anything they want to hear these days.

Pandas...

Source that it's a myth. Please. I call bull.

Following Bush's re-election, Ken Mehlman, Bush's campaign manager and Chairman of the RNC, held several large meetings with African-American business, community, and religious leaders. In his speeches, he apologized for his party's use of the Southern Strategy in the past. When asked about the strategy of using race as an issue to build GOP dominance in the once-Democratic South, Mehlman replied, "Republican candidates often have prospered by ignoring black voters and even by exploiting racial tensions," and, "by the '70s and into the '80s and '90s, the Democratic Party solidified its gains in the African-American community, and we Republicans did not effectively reach out. Some Republicans gave up on winning the African-American vote, looking the other way or trying to benefit politically from racial polarization. I am here today as the Republican chairman to tell you we were wrong."^[40][41]

Pandas - Historically, the Republicans were the more liberal party, until the sixties and President Johnson. His civil rights push is what sent the Southerners to the Republicans. Once the demographics shifted, the party platforms shifted, and you really can't deny that it was racism along with economics that caused much of that shift.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-gop/2787426/posts

http://www.redstate.com/dan_mclaughlin/2012/07/11/the-southern-strategy-myth-and-the-lost-majority/

and even a very liberal newspaper thrown in there: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/10/magazine/10Section2b.t-4.html

you know, there is this thing called google and you could search for them yourself?

also, did you read what you wrote? some republicans tried to benefit from racial polarization, not all, not even most. everyone knows the number of minorities far outweighs the number of extremely racist people in the US. he is right that the republicans did not get out the word enough that they were fighting for everyone, they just assumed people would look at history. but we have seen the number of informed voters drop and with that we have also seen a drop in the knowledge of the past, which is what the republican party was relying on for minorities. we were wrong. we thought that the expansion of education and information was going to continue. we never thought it would halt and turn into people who don't know much about history, who think the world owe them something just because they exist. that type of thinking was never around until recently, and we all know which party capitalized on it.

and the south started the main shift from democrat to republican in the late 40s, well before johnson and right after WWII, when the industrialized areas that boomed during the wars while making weapons and such had become increasingly wealthy. that's when the solid south started to end. i won't deny that racism may have an effect, but it is certainly not even being close to the main effect. and there is racism on both sides.

"You start out in 1954 by saying, “@!$%#, @!$%#, @!$%#.” By 1968 you can’t say “@!$%#”—that hurts you, backfires. So you say stuff like, uh, forced busing, states’ rights, and all that stuff, and you’re getting so abstract. Now, you’re talking about cutting taxes, and all these things you’re talking about are totally economic things and a byproduct of them is, blacks get hurt worse than whites.… “We want to cut this,” is much more abstract than even the busing thing, uh, and a hell of a lot more abstract than “@!$%#, @!$%#.”

“Now, y’all aren't quoting me on this?”

-Lee Atwater, comments on The Southern Strategy

what was filtered out in the quote above was lee Atwater using the N word.

The New York Times article is mentioning a book that is making the claim that the 'Southern Strategy' is a myth. The New York Times is not saying that it's a myth. Two very different things. Doesn't help your argument.

Besides, why would the chairman of the RNC have to apologize for something that you claim is a myth?

and you ignored the other articles and facts and instead gave one speech by one person and tried to make it out to seem like every republican thinks that. it really did not help your argument either and is the reason why this comment thread got started in the first place. i guess democrats don't say the N-word either?

you also don't seem to understand that he did not apologize for the "southern strategy" as you have defined it. the southern strategy that the has been talked about by the rnc is the strategy that i mentioned above. thinking that well-informed people would know about the past and vote accordingly and such as i stated above.

and i'm off. i have a life to live and i've spent too much time on this so-called "news" site. it's not hard to search on google, so if you have any more questions you can do research there.

I ignored the claims made by extremely right leaning, biased, conservative papers. Also, that one quote from that one person was Lee Atwater, the political consultant and strategist for the republican party at the time who later bacame the RNC chairman. I quoted the one person that could most effectively speak for the Republican Party. Don't disregard it because you don't like what he said.

You still haven't answered the question about why Mr. Mehlman, also a chairman of the RNC, appologized for a myth.

You sound like a holocaust denier.

Human says, The Democrats that fought against the 13th amendment are todays Republicans. Wrong. The Democrats that fought against the 13th Amendment are dead, Jim.

Evening William.. Yes and those backward savages saved many American and Australian lives in WW2...Fighting in the jungles and carrying the wounded soldiers on stretchers for days over treacherous mountain ranges. All the time evading the Japanese to save them. How quick you forget...no surprise here...

@ Shona1 How quick you forget that if not for the U.S.A. they would still be evading the Japanese and probably speaking it as the native language...............

William, those "backward savages" have adopted your precious "Western Culture". Just look at the cars, clothing, government, police force, etc, etc, etc, etc.

Oh, right, no matter how "Civilized" anyone becomes, they're still only "backward savages" simply because they are not of White Christian European descent. Yes, the "Native American Indian" Indigenous Peoples of the "Western Hemisphere" learned that during the past 500+ years.

Roscoe2u;

If not for those "backward savages", the Japanese would probably be in full control of half of Australia and all of the U.S.A. Territories in the South Pacific.

Interesting how the Great and Powerful "I did that by myself" U.S.A. has ALWAYS needed help to do anything -- and then people such as yourself come along and claim "if not for the U.S.A....".

Oh, right, no matter how "Civilized" anyone becomes, they're still only "backward savages" simply because they are not of White Christian European descent.

Maybe, just maybe, he was calling them backward savages because they BURNED SOMEONE ALIVE!

No, skeptical12345, "he" was calling them "backward savages" because they are not "Civilized Westerners" -- i.e., Christian, White or European.

They have learned "Civilized" ways such as placing more importance on money than people, however.

@ Quacked , Our Navy kept the Japanese out of Australia as we had bases there. Spin it anyway you want but the bulk of the Fighting in the Pacific was done by us. You can't re-write history especially when there are still those folks around who were there...........

William, those "backward savages" have adopted your precious "Western Culture". Just look at the cars, clothing, government, police force, etc, etc, etc, etc.

Oh, right, no matter how "Civilized" anyone becomes, they're still only "backward savages" simply because they are not of White Christian European descent. Yes, the "Native American Indian" Indigenous Peoples of the "Western Hemisphere" learned that during the past 500+ years.

He says "Backward savages" in response to an article about witch burning, and you make it about race? Are you a troll, or just really, really stupid?

Quacked, you have a lot of hate for a specific group of people.... isn't that racism? Assuming everyone that is white hates anyone that is not is racism. You are a racist, and it doesn't matter what race you are, anyone can be a racist.

I would say if a group of white people burned someone for sorcery, I would call them backwards, if a group of asian people burned someone for sorcery, I would call them backwards. Hey, is someone burns someone else for sorcery, they are backwards!

All races have their killers, rapists, gang bangers, racists, "civilized" individuals, Christians, Muslims, Buiddhists, Hindus, aetheists...........you cannot intelligently classify any specific group of people as one thing any more. You also cannot assume that all people of any given distinction (race, color, creed, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, etc...) have the same prejudices, or even like what others in the so-called or percieved "majority" of their classification are doing.

Welcome to globalization..... and individual thought. Stop being a sheeple and following the herd over the cliff. Think for yourself.

He didn't just say 'backwards savages'. He said, "Backward savages, what is the surprise here?" He is implying that for some reason, we should not be surprised by what they did. What reason should we have for not being surprised? I'm going to step out on a limb and guess that the OP thinks there is no surprise to be had because these people are poor, uneducated, and black. The OP likely views these types of people as 'backwards savages'. It's a demeaning way to look at people and it's wrong. People do stupid and cruel things everywhere. Even here in the civilized U.S. of A.

Morning Roscoe..No I don't forget what America did for Australia in WW2...we would have been cactus without you....But "one incident" regardless of how awful and William brands a whole country as "backward savages"....And if you knew your history you would know Australian soldiers on the Kokoda track were the first to push the Japanese back, not the US or anyone else. We were bloody desperate because once they got thru PNG we were next. It was the first time the Japenese had to retreat. Not many Americans know that. One of the secrets of WW2 as MacArthur did not want it know that a bunch of rag tag Aussies got in first. So no we don't forget our mates across the Pacific nor do we the Papuans that saved many. So feel free to google the "Kokoda track" and all will be revealed....

re because they are not of White Christian European descent: Oh really? Is there now a DNA test that can reveal one's true "Christian descent"? Human, were you born on the seventh planet, or did you just make regular visits there all of your life?

I guess it would be bad form to burn down their village. I'm not sure they deserve anything better but I guess we must be civil.

sure, modern justice will do great things to the "perpetrators". they fear nothing but their own belief in sorcery, yet what will you do, put them in correctional facility so they can be "corrected"?

no matter what you feel about them, it's like putting a lion in a cage for killing a cow. he won't understand why you're doing this to him, in his mind he was totally justified.

Well, they could always force the guilty to sit through the Harry Potter movies, and then have Daniel Radcliffe show up and curse the everloving **** out of them. That should have those ignorant backwater trogs wetting themselves and dying of heart attacks in no time. Further proof that sorcery works in their inferior minds.

Well, they could always force the guilty to sit through the Harry Potter movies, and then have Daniel Radcliffe show up and curse the everloving **** out of them.

LOL, I like that idea.

Evening oklahoma...no their beliefs are if someone dies or is sick, then "someone" has put a spell on them. So they hunt out the person who is "accused" and then more of less kill them. Other times they may want compensation instead money, pigs or what ever. Quite often if villages are at war with one another or there are tribal fights then to pacify them, someone more or less has to die. So one can just say, you did it and you are cactus. The was no nurse involved, just mere superstition and nothing more.

Just like a lot of countries I am afraid....

Just like some of the "Vacation Destinations" in the U.S.A. Miami, L.A., Las Vegas, New York City, New Orleans, etc, etc, etc.....

I have to say there are very few other countries in the world I would like to visit. Of course I'm not much for traveling anyway.

Yes, I believe I will also take Papua New Guinea off my travel list!

If you are amazed, then you must not read/watch the news often. Or leave your home much....

Yeah, because believing in a sky fairy makes so much more sense than witchcraft. Wasn't it Christians who persecuted witches?

Feel better now, jboat? Feel superior? Mocking the beliefs of others who harm you not is SOOOOOOOO satisfying. How many millions of people have officially atheistic governments persecuted? How many?

I'd take a good person who happened to be a Christian OR an atheist as a neighbor any day, over a jerk. In-your-face religious fanatics stink - and so do in-your-face atheists.

jboat, you are correct.

Nik,

Mocking the beliefs of others who harm you not...

There is nothing more evil than religion. As far as death tolls on this planet, christians are leadng the pack by a big margin. They've burned and tortured milliions and millions of innocents. It also appears your god has recently blessed one of his own, on a burning pile of old tires. It was gods will, remember?

I think Focus on the Family has ordered the Guinea witch burning procedure manual because they have not practiced the art in a while, but they are still hoping.

You are so wrong. Communist China and Nazi Germany, along with communist Lao killed tens of millions of people, along with people who persecute Christians. People who worship Human (government) are far more dangerous. So stop your ignorance hate and nonsense.

Religious wars and crimes are committed in all religions, not just Christianity. This brutal murder was committed out of ignorance. We have voodoo in the United States and all other sorts of "religions", we are a melting pot. However, we try to co-exist and live harmoneously. It doesn't always work, but I don't remember the last time I witnessed a 20 year old woman being burned on a pile of garbage in the United States. I do pray we have advanced a little further than this behavior. My sympathy to the family and friends of this unjustly accused woman.

It was likely the influence of your Christianity that helped cause this crime. After all, your Bible says to kill witches........

TL, let's have some proof! You know not of what you speak! Provide your source!

The Quacked One:

I believe you reference the same Christianity and Bible to which some of your own (extended) family members probably ascribe. Not much of chance that they would burn witches; is there?

Your's, too, TL. Many of your family members you would consider following "evil."

JTM, and E K,

Please google "victims of the christian faith" and hit the first link to Truthbeknown . com

I'm guessing over 80 million killed by gods right hand men, and that's likely too low.

Not just christians, but catholics and muslims and other people who believe in god are just as evil.

Clipped from another newsvine post:

Stalin and Pol Pot are examples of communist dictators, not atheists killing
people based on dogma. In fact, while some believe Hitler was an atheist, he
frequently used religion to back up his policies. In a 1933 speech, Hitler said:
We were convinced that the people need and require this faith. We have
therefore undertaken the fight against the atheistic movement, and that not
merely with a few theoretical declarations: we have stamped it out.

Hitler used god to kill people. Get it yet? god is a tool and if you hide behind that, you are scum.

I hope the people who burned that poor girl get twice the pain she did and then get executed by her family and friends.

If you argue that those people are crazy and worship false idols and believe in witchcraft, I see no difference between them and the church down the street. Religion kills, simple as that.

Sarcasticus:

Your's, too, TL. Many of your family members you would consider following "evil."

All my immediate family are atheists. If I have other extended family who claim god, then I disown them and hope I never have to see or speak to them. Not pretense here, I reject them all. god is evil.

@ TL -

All my immediate family are atheists. If I have other extended family who claim god, then I disown them and hope I never have to see or speak to them. Not pretense here, I reject them all.

So you are a bigot and admit it. At least that something. Is the first question you ask someone you meet for the first time whether or not they are religious? Do you blow them off if they say yes? You must be a hoot at work.

Wow! Who's the "hater" now, TL?

Your intensity is reflective of the people alluded to in the article.

Best wishes to you.

I'm a pacifist, but I do have my opinions.

I simply try to ignore all the morons around me. Hard to do when they're burning people alive.

If you think I'm a bigot, then feel free to think that. Everyone has their opinion.

If you ask the three people I saved from drowning in the surf, I think they would overlook my bigotry.

Do you think they would have rather drowned than be saved by an atheist?

I suppose since STALIN was atheist and he killed millions or had millions put to death and tortured, that all atheist are murders as well. So you can get rid of the we are "Unholier then tho" attitude.

TL

Talk to those that Mother Teresa helped over the years and ask them how evil God is. Maybe try talking to all those that have been saved by someone that gave their own life because, a of a belief in God, to help someone else. Just because you claim to do something in the name of "you fill in the blank" doesn't make it so. There is a reason the devil is called the great deceiver. Wishing pain on someone is not pacifism.

Do you think they would have rather drowned than be saved by an atheist?

Of course not. But they probably aren't bigoted either... :) You were the one that said you would disown family that were religious. You were the one that said all things religious are bad including religious people. Sorry but that's the very definition of bigot.

TL-1214673:

It must be difficult being you. Apparently, you have to cope with a lot of personal anger issues and a lot of raging resentment for those who easily recognize the clues for God’s existence all around us while you remain unable to comprehend the obvious. Instead, your mindless hostility causes you to lash out at believers as if that provides an iota of relief from your inner turmoil. I really pity you. Honestly, I do.

But if you ever become an adherent of science, logic, philosophy, or common sense, you will eventually discover this inescapable truth – God really exists. While the existence of God cannot be proven scientifically in a laboratory, there are enough clues to conclude that God exists beyond a reasonable doubt. For example, the existence of God is clearly indicated by an honest examination of the Argument from Design, two Laws of Thermodynamics, the Law of Cause and Effect, the Law of Biogenesis, clues from the Fossil Record, the Existence of Conscience, and the Wisdom of the Ages. These arguments/clues collectively provide enough of a starting point to rightly conclude that a Higher Being of some kind exists.

While I’m on the topic of science and God, here’s the conclusion that Albert Einstein arrived at during his illustrious career: “Everyone who is seriously involved in the pursuit of science becomes convinced that a spirit is manifest in the laws of the Universe – a spirit vastly superior to that of man…In this way the pursuit of science leads to a religious feeling of a special sort, which is indeed quite different from the religiosity of someone more naive.”

Ok, so maybe all religious perosns are not evil, but I will never trust anyone with such delusions as believing in a god. People can claim they are righteous until the day they die, but the fact is RELIGION KILLS. There are no bigger haters, bigots and racists than those who subscribe to a god. (not all, of course, but too many for my liking) Clergy are the scum of the earth.

The only way forward for humanity is education. Religion must be abolished if we are to survive and flourish as a species. If you feel I'm a bigot for having that opinion, then so be it.

Cheers.

Rhonda, you are really clueless arent you? I'm blown away by how sheepish and blind people are, grasping anything that gives them comfort, including fairy tales.

You say it must be hard to be me, Not. I'm easy going and have lots of fun. I simply ignore the morons.

there are enough clues to conclude that God exists beyond a reasonable doubt. For example, the existence of God is clearly indicated by an honest examination of the Argument from Design, two Laws of Thermodynamics, the Law of Cause and Effect, the Law of Biogenesis, clues from the Fossil Record, the Existence of Conscience, and the Wisdom of the Ages.

Really? Wow, glad I'm not so gullible as to believe in that garbage. god is a fairy tale, get over yourself.

Please excuse me as I need to go make another donation to the Ocean Conservancy. I'm trying to save the planet, while your doing nothing but trying to feel superior and happy. Good luck with your afterlife thingy.

TL-1214673:

YOU WROTE: "People can claim they are righteous until the day they die, but the fact is RELIGION KILLS. There are no bigger haters, bigots and racists than those who subscribe to a god. (not all, of course, but too many for my liking) Clergy are the scum of the earth." (Note - insert laugh track here)

MY RESPONSE: Wow! What a hate-filled, uninformed comment.

I've got a news flash for you: the greatest evils in history usually resulted from the denial of God, not the pursuit of Him. In the last century alone, more innocent people were murdered, tortured, and enslaved by secular ideologies – Nazism and Communism – than by all religions in recorded history. And I have the documentation to backup that statement.

Grab a copy of the Guinness Book of World Records and turn to the category "Judicial," sub-heading "Crimes: Mass killings." You'll find that carnage of unimaginable proportions resulted not from religion, but from institutionalized atheism. Guinness reports, "The greatest massacre ever imputed by the government of one sovereign against another is the 26.3 million Chinese killed during the regime of Mao Zedong between 1949 and May 1965 (total of 16 years)."

The Walker report published by the U.S. Senate Committee of the Judiciary in July 1971 went one step further. It placed "…the total death toll in China since 1949 (total of 22 years) between 32.25 and 61.7 million." For our purposes, I think it's reasonable to accept the figure of 47 million killed in China as a compromise average for the 22-year span mentioned in the Walker report.

In addition, Adolf Hitler murdered six million Jews during the holocaust, which was performed for ethnic cleansing and false economics. Hitler was a social Darwinist, slaughtering people who didn't fit his concept of an Aryan master race. That's why he also sent an untold number of gypsies, homosexuals, the mentally impaired, and other "undesirables" to the gas chambers.

In the USSR, Nobel Prize winner Alexander Solzhenitsyn estimated that state repression and terrorism took over 60 million lives from 1917 to 1959 under Lenin, Stalin, and Khrushchev. However, the worst known per-capita genocide of all time happened in Cambodia under Pol Pot. According to Guinness, "More than one third of the eight million Khmers were killed between April 17, 1975 and January 1979."

Let me add to that mix some other recent atheist rulers who slaughtered vast numbers of people: Kim Il-Sung of North Korea dispatched approximately 1,600,000 people; Josip Broz Tito of Yugoslavia killed an estimated 1,072,000 people; and Nicolae Ceausescue of Romania put to death 60,000 folks.

In contrast, a recent comprehensive compilation of the history of ALL HUMAN WARFARE IN RECORDED HISTORY, "Encyclopedia of Wars" (a three-volume set by Charles Phillips and Alan Axelrod), documented 1,763 wars, of which only 123 have been classified to involve a religious conflict. So, what the anti-religion bigots, such as yourself, consider to be "most" really amounts to LESS THAN 7% OF ALL WARS in history involve religion. Most wars are fought for power, territory, and resources, according to historians.

Furthermore, here's a comparative tally pertinent to our discussion: the total number of deaths estimated to lie at the feet of Christianity throughout recorded history is approximately 17 million. This number can be derived from totals presented in the "Encyclopedia of Wars" along with various websites, and includes ancient wars, the Crusades, the Inquisitions, various European wars during the Middle Ages, and even witchcraft trials. For the sake of argument, let's assume that the other two predominant religions (Judaism and Islam) are responsible for an equal number of deaths because there is no known documentation for those estimates. That brings us to 51 million deaths attributable to the three predominant religions throughout recorded history. Even if you add to that total the deaths attributable to obscure religions, you'd still be hard pressed to match the 120+ million death toll achieved by atheist leaders DURING ONLY THE LAST CENTURY ALONE.

Therefore 17 million deaths attributable to Christianity throughout all of recorded history (or 51 million estimated deaths attributable to all three main religions) pales in comparison to the 120+ million deaths attributable to atheist leaders during just the 20th Century alone!

The obvious conclusion here is that atheist leaders are far more brutal, sadistic, and savage on a far larger scale than religious folks have ever been. The FACTS speak for themselves...you just have to examine them with an open mind. Otherwise, ignorance and anti-religion bigotry will continue to cloud your thinking.

You might want to ponder the words of Will Rogers, who once said, "It's not the things we don't know
that gets us into trouble. It's the things we know that just ain't true."

Oh, by the way, I'm not Christian, Jewish or Muslim. I'm a Deist who doesn't belong to any particular organized religion. I'm just trying to combat the ignorance, like yours, supporting anti-religion bigotry on this thread.

TL-1214673:

YOU WROTE: "Wow, glad I'm not so gullible as to believe in that garbage. god is a fairy tale, get over yourself."

MY RESPONSE: So, are you claiming that Albert Einstein and a host of other historical icons who believed in God were gullible and believed in garbage? Here's a PARTIAL list of history’s leading scientists who happen to be Christian: Kepler, Galileo, Brahe, Descartes, Copernicus, Boyle, Newton, Leibniz, Gassendi, Pascal, Mersenne, Cuvier, Harvey, Dalton, Faraday, Herschel, Joule, Lyell, Lavoisier, Priestley, Kelvin, Ohm, Ampere, Steno, Pasteur, Maxwell, Planck, Lemaitre, and Mendel.

A good number of these scientists were clergymen; Gassendi and Mersenne were priests. So was Georges Lemaitre, a Belgian astronomer who first proposed the “Big Bang” theory for the origin of the universe. Gregor Mendel, who discovered the principles of heredity, spent his entire adult life as a monk in an Augustinian monastery. Where would modern science be without the wisdom of these historical icons? Some were Protestant and some were Catholic, but all saw their scientific vocation in distinctly Christian terms.

Finally, I notice that you posted several rants on this thread containing little, if anything, of substance. You make wild claims, spew insults, and engage in hyperbole, but almost always without a scintilla of documentation, logic, or rational thought to back up your tirades. But I guess that's just your preferred style of debate, which says more about you than about the authors you criticize.

Nothing so evil as a man armed with a book of religion. They burn women, crucify men, stone children, whatever can get a crowd incited and put more money in the collection plate. It has never been about compassion; it has been about controlling the poor people with fear. The worst thing they do isn't make the masses fear the priests and clergy, it's when they make the people fear each other. They control the ignorant believers so tightly that they inform on each other with no evidence other than innuendo and suspicion. For instance, an unattached woman was more likely to be accused of witchcraft than a married woman because of jealousy and rivalry. The nature of religion is evil because it allows people to commit evil acts and lets them think that "god" is absolving them of the sin or that an evil act is justified because they are doing God's work. No evil act is done in god's name. EVER! Those books were written by evil men. No God justifies the killing of men in his name. Who are you kidding? If he wanted people dead, he would make them disappear. There is no righteous killing. It is mind control. Any book that says you will go to heaven for killing god's enemies is rubbish, not written by any god.

Sandy-3553979:

The generalities that you listed in your hate-laced comment are absurd, so I won't bother refuting them. I'm not a fan of hysteria like you are.

So, let me say this: surely, there are some charlatans in religious institutions, as in nearly all institutions, because institutions are run by imperfect human beings. But your rant ignores the greater good that religious institutions generally achieve.

For example, organized religions often organize massive charitable assistance programs for those in need, (Catholic Charities, for example, is one of the LARGEST PRIVATE CHARITIES IN THE ENTIRE WORLD). Organized religions also foster mutual support for their own members during times of personal crises or need. Many organized religions run homeless shelters, provide free counseling for various addictions, and promote charitable volunteer work among church members. And much of the time, churches do such good work without any publicity. But we all know that just one misdeed or failure by a prominent church member makes instant headlines. Such is the nature of the biased, corrupt news media.

Here’s a recent specific example of a good deed done by an organized religion. During the aftermath of Hurricane Irene, a local Christian church brought out 113 volunteers to cut wood from fallen trees, load it into 38 large trucks, and deliver it as free firewood to 33 needy families. The volunteers delivered between a half cord to three cords of firewood at each stop. For many people, that firewood was the only source of heat during the winter months, according to a press release. This is the fifth year that this particular church has spearheaded their “Firewood for Families” endeavor. The majority of the families who received the free firewood also utilize the church’s food pantry, which serves more than 450 families every week. That’s a lot of good work done by an organized religion!

And as far as I know, nobody made any money from that episode or exerted power over the downtrodden. And nobody was "blacklisted" for having non-Christian beliefs. In fact, none of the needy was even asked what religious beliefs, if any, they held.

Your anti-religion bigotry is shameful and ignorant. You shouldn't showcase such ignorance on a public forum.

So, if you are ever in danger from a criminal, I guess you will be calling a construction worker for help?

If I'm in danger from a criminal, I pull out my gun, put my finger on the trigger, and take aim. If they continue trying to harm me -- I shoot.

Then I call the cops so they can do their job, which is Clean up the mess and investigate what happened. Hint: The job of the police is NOT to protect you.

antireagan;

When your life is in danger, or you need to stop someone who is a danger to everyone else as soon as possible, you DO NOT try to shoot them in the leg or arm. You shoot TO KILL because it is the fastest and most efficient way to stop them.

Tell ya what, go run a mile or so (or however far you can manage before collapsing; in your case probably a few dozen feet), grab a pistol and see if you can shoot 3 to 8 inch wide target that is moving around constantly and erratically. If you can do it with every shot, maybe you should become a cop so you can teach every cop how to do it... If not -- then stfu about they're supposed to not shoot to kill.

not entirely true, if you pack the correct firearm, try a judge with .410 self defense shells.

"riot Guns"are usually for crowd control

To say that about cops is pretty offensive. Cops first of all, do protect. By enforcing the law and shooting a bad guy with a gun, or simply getting the bad guy to drop his or her gun if the criminal is willing to comply, they can save a bunch of lives. Look at how many hostage situations that cops get involved with. They are trying to save lives deep down within as well as enforcing the law. And if any hostage taker kills all the hostages and lets say, kills himself or herself, I bet you those cops trying to stop the bad guy feel really bad deep down that they couldn't save them. Sounds tramatizing to me. If I was a cop, I would be honored to save a life and if I failed, I would simply feel so bad for weeks and would have a hard time getting over it.

Only reason why they shoot you if feeling threatend is if you happen to be brandishing a knife or gun. A person brandishing a weapon could possibly commit murder. Every time I hear about a cop shooting a person, that person tends to be acting like they could be dangerous, or sometimes having a realistic looking toy gun that they might think is real.

No, that is what BAD religious belief does. Many people have suffered because of certain political ideologies. Are all political systems therefor bad? Get rid of "God belief" altogether, and people would still find ways to torment other people. Even people like YOU would come up with "ideas".

Really? There is a difference between "Bad" myths (religions) and "good ones". Give me a break.

You have a point Nik. Buddism, for instance, is an example of a faith that does not inspire cruelty. The real "bad" faiths are the Abrahamic ones.

leroy brown, you have heard the saying about the christmas goose??? By Abrahamic faith you are referencing "christianity and judaisim" I assume. Dont forget that Islam also claims descent from Abraham through Ishmael. the truth of the matter that any militant, radical religious power is negative and has done horrible things to others. Man's inhumanity to man. Chinese are buddhista and daoists; Japan is ancestral among others, India has some cults guilty of horrendous crimes; look as some of the primative tribes and some of their rituals; Afkrica with its varied spiritual leanings have slaughtered millions; Hitler claimed to be a lutheran; it is not about abrahamiuc "religions" but about the resident evil in the heart of man and his capacity to do awful things to others. We are all able to do that given the right circumstances, even you Leroy. So , as the saying goes, people living in glass houses should not throw stones, and my ancestor, Robert Burns, said if we could only see ourselves as others see us. And history has demonstrated that most of the holocaust of recent centuries has been aimed at the abrahamic religion by others who claim to be of the same. Ask the Jewish people. and next time stay with the subject and dfon't use any platform available to spout your obvious hate for and prejudice toward "christianity."

Try opening a book, oh bashing one. Christians weren't the first to persecute alleged witches. Pre-Christian Roman PAGANS were okay with magic and charms, but had very negative attitudes towards witchcraft, to the point of having LAWS against it.

Veni - this woman should NOT have died as she did, for ANY reason, but you assume that she was a "spiritual healer". We don't know if she WAS a spiritual healer, or if she really did practice malevolent sorcery (as defined by her culture), or if she was falsely accused, period. Modern day Wiccans and many "traditional witches" in the west practice earth-centered faiths that are actually quite beautiful, and they see themselves as being healers, wise women, wise men, etc. You cannot translate all of this though to all other cultures. Again - anti-witchcraft sentiments in some cultures, predate Christianity.

In pre-Christian Africa, people believed that there were different kinds of people who employed "magic":

1. Spiteful people who operated in secret to harm others

2. Fortune tellers or diviners, who foretold the future, detected illness, and practiced medicine.

3. Witchdoctors. The South African Zulu word, "inyanga", today means, "a healer who uses witchcraft". Originally though, its meaning was: "one who diagnoses and cures maladies CAUSED by witches". Christianity certainly brought its prejudice against witchcraft to Africa, but pre-Christian Africans were afraid of witches too.

That"s a defense of christianity, Nik? Christians burned witches too but they didn't invent it? These people didn't invent it either, so I guess it's ok!

Leroy, that is a ridiculous comment. You know full well that I wasn't defending the bad things that some Christians have done or do in the name of their faith. I clearly stated that the burning of this woman was wrong for ANY reason, and I'll be damned if I'm going to sit by and watch people bash ANY group because it suits their agenda. Officials in Africa who condemned this act are Christians. That means nothing to you? Of course not.

I specifically responded to comments that suggest that no one in all of HISTORY had a problem with witchcraft, until Christianity came along. That is untrue, and that was my only point. You and other people flock to stories like this because they "prove" to you and only you that your prejudice is justified. Many schools, orphanages, hospitals, hospices, and food pantries are also rooted in religion. People have put their lives on the line to save others and they got strength from their religions. People have made sacrifices, worked with the poor, and fed the hungry because of religion, but yokels ignore or negate all of this and go on and on about how HORRIBLE "religion" is.

You Leroy, also conveniently ignore some comments and cherry pick parts of others and focus on those parts to score points, but it won't work with me. There are good and bad people of ALL faiths, and there are good and bad atheists. I respect the GOOD, regardless of the religion or lack thereof. There are also BAD people who twist politics and cause misery, even as some religious people twist religion to do the same, but I've never heard you harp on the evils of politics and organized government.

I can live with, and will defend, good people of faith or good atheists. That's more than you can say about yourself, seemingly, yet how superior you are.

There's no such thing as ghosts. It is this belief in ludicrous, childish fairytales, that you participate in, which is the root cause of this incident.

Evening..Dr MS..You seem very backward and ignorant with your own comments about countries you know little about. First we do not need to "re colonize" Papua..they are a country in their own right now..no better and no worse than any other. They make their own way in this world and so be it. Yes rotten things happen in all countries, including mine which is Australia and in yours. Papuans will think school children slaughtered by someone in the States with a gun, is totally "uncivilized", totally abhorrent and sick. No we are not proud of how our Koori's have been/are treated here ...are you proud of how the American Indians are treated???? You do understand the majourity of Koori's live in the desert as that is their country. They live, breath and cherish their country be it desert or coastal. They also live in the towns and cities..as for quiet and passive..You have no idea do you. They have had riots in Redfern, protests it all capital cities, protests on Australia Day. The Koori's are in our Parliaments, they are doctors, lawyers, teachers, politicians...I can honestly say I have never seen one American Indian in your Parliament. You need to read, learn and see more before you "assume" things you know nothing about. Yes Papua has pay back, an eye for an eye and they don't stuff around. It goes back thousands of years and stopped many tribal wars that would have slaughtered hundreds. As for the Pacific islands your question is rather vague...they are quite similar in some respects and different in others, with their rituals and beliefs. But they are all different countries so not sure what you are trying to compare. At the end of day who are we to pass judgement on other countries, when our own are not in order.

Shona, Rep. Tammy Duckworth is an American Indian.

leroy... actually Ms. Duckworth is of Thai ancestry. One of her parents was Thai and the other was a US citizen.