Would you burn Quran if it killed a soldier?

[spartan]

This is the exact flip side of the Mosque issue. Don't mean to open a can of worms there, but other than the fire ordnance, best I can see they have the right to do this. Again, as with the Mosque one must ask the wisdom of doing this. It is dumb to put it mildly.

Interesting to observe however how the media are up in arms about how offensive this is and not a peep about their Constitutional rights. At least not that I have seen so far and am willing to be corrected.

this is just like the mosque. they have the freedom of speech to express their displeasure with islam by burning the koran but they shouldn't do it since it will only stoke the radical sects of islam and give them recruiting material while doing nothing positive.

we can't bend over backwards to every single whim of radical islam but when people do stuff like this they don't do any good and a whole lot of bad.

at least i'm a conservative who is being consistent, i think the mosque is a bad idea but wouldn't want to legally deny them the right to build the mosque. same thing with these idiots who want to burn the qu'ran.

Two sides of the same coin is what I meant, so yes I agree with you.

[jbear]

I think it might be a fun idea if somebody showed up to that thing with some bibles to chuck in at the last minute.  Then they could scream "There are bibles in the fire!!!"  Anyone as crazy as these people seem would probably go into hysteria after realizing they're burning bibles too.  It just seems a fitting punishment to me.  It would probably be wishful thinking to hope that these people recognize the irony in the scene.

I can think of a much better thing to burn than a book.

[kevabuc]

Does anything intelligent ever come out of Gainesville?

[Skull and Bones]

But the U.S. military thinks it's ok to burn bibles in Afganistan as a safety measure:  http://www.worthynews.com/5740-outrage-over-us-military-bible-burnings-in-afghanistan

[SepeBucs]

But the U.S. military thinks it's ok to burn bibles in Afganistan as a safety measure:  http://www.worthynews.com/5740-outrage-over-us-military-bible-burnings-in-afghanistan

That situation is 1000 times different.

Those Bible did not belong to a special group working in Afghanistan, they were sent to US troops in Afghanistan in hopes that individual US soldiers would pass them out to local Afgans. The soldier that received them in fact was trying to hand them out to Afgans when he was stopped and the books confiscated. Now the bible maybe could have been sent back to the states or something else and Burning may not have been the best idea, but that is how all literature is disposed of over there, from classified documents to Romance novels the troops toss out.

This was not an overt (or covert)  attempt to criticize or propagandize any religion or movement. It was merely the standard practice for disposal of unwanted printed materials.

One thing to consider:

While in uniform (in Afghanistan, the service member is always in uniform) service members are not allowed to proselytize for any religion or political cause. The only time this is allowed is when it is an organized event such as a mass by the command chaplain.

[Skull and Bones]

 http://www.haaretz.com/news/orthodox-jewish-youths-burn-new-testaments-in-or-yehuda-1.246153

[SepeBucs]

http://www.haaretz.com/news/orthodox-jewish-youths-burn-new-testaments-in-or-yehuda-1.246153

This one is at least relevant. It is a religious act, the other one you reported was not.

[Boid Fink]

People who equate Muslims as terrorists are morons. 

Muslims do not kill children, women, and men, all innocent.

Terrorists do. 

[kbl11]

I see this as akin to yelling "Fire!" in a crowded theater. You have a pretty good idea that the consequenses of your action will lead to the injury or death of others, but you do it anyway.

My guess is that purely from a freedom of speech angle, he can do it. It's publicizing it as a spectacle that probably crosses the line into incitement.

From a personal perspective, I think it's one of the most childish, arrogant, selfish things I have ever heard of. It lowers him to the level of the people he so hates. 

I see it differently

If a terrorist takes a US citizen hostage, should we negotiate with them since we hold the outcome of that mans life in our hands? We dont play that game


You cant blame that man if some crazy towelhead kills a few more soldiers. The towelheads use WAY less propaganda to convince their people to kill americans. You cant start telling americans what they can and cant do in america, in order to get on the good side of the guys who are willing to blow themself up to take out a few people

[SnookAU]

If you want to burn something on September 11th, burn a candle to remember the people that died on that terrible day.

I can't think of anything more stupid to argue over than religion. 

All this chasing the terrorist/boogie man crap needs to end.  Put our troops on the US-Mexico border and protect our land HERE.  Afterall, we ARE being invaded.

[mjs020294]

If you want to burn something on September 11th, burn a candle to remember the people that died on that terrible day.

I can't think of anything more stupid to argue over than religion. 

All this chasing the terrorist/boogie man crap needs to end.  Put our troops on the US-Mexico border and protect our land HERE.  Afterall, we ARE being invaded.

AMEN

[Skull and Bones]

but all this crap keeps peoples mind's off the economic depression we are in or the fact our country is bankrupt.

[Boid Fink]

I wonder how people would respond if Muslim Mosque leaders decided to burn bibles?  On TV?

It is America...but some people are jackarses.

[cyberdude557]

The truth is a person has the right in the United States of America to burn a flag, a Bible, a Quran, or any other symbol no matter how stupid or insensitive that act is.

That's the cold, hard reality of the whole situation. The question is, if the threat of violence forces you to back down from expressing your freedom of speech, havn't you already lost that freedom?