[thechat] King Preaches Abstinence to Parading Maidens

[Madhu Menon]

At 07:02 AM 13-09-02, William Anderson wrote:
> > I don't have enough money to buy books for you. I would better devote
> > it to some Islamic centre.
>
>Syed, if you have sources, please quote them, e.g. texts, titles, authors,
>ISBN numbers, journal numbers, whatever.  Otherwise John is quite right to
>dismiss your claims in the absence of a valid and recognisable source.

Let me mediate. :)

Syed, what Will and John are saying is that when you make a claim that
there is "scientific evidence" to support a claim about the sexual
behaviour of roughly half of the 6 billion odd people on this planet, then
you must at least mention pertinent studies and research that support your
claim. (See http://skepdic.com/science.html )
The burden of proof lies with the person making the claim. He or she can't
tell people to go find the relevant research (if any) for themselves.

That doesn't mean buying books, journals, etc. for the rest of us. Just
mention their names or hyperlinks.

(Personally, I'm more than a little offended at the implied accusation that
I lack the ability to be faithful to a single partner.)

John isn't a Christian. He, like me (and a few others on this list), is an
atheist. So he doesn't support the Catholic church's ways any more than he
supports the wearing of a burqa. [1]

Some of us are also troubled by customs like having several wives that seem
to exist for nothing else but supposedly satisfying the wanton lust of men,
reducing women to mere sex objects. That this custom  existed much before
any real research into human sexuality or sexual behaviour was carried out
very clearly tells me that its establishment wasn't for "scientific"
reasons. Unless, of course, we've lost a lot of research from the 7th
century. :)

And I think John is taking umbrage at the "Don't blame us, it's all in the
name of science" reason you're citing. Science, as we all probably know,
usually has very little to do with most religious customs, rituals, and
beliefs. Heck, the very idea of "faith", central to all religions, is
opposed to science (which relies on evidence.)

Regards,

Madhu
(who was born a Hindu and has deeply religious parents)

[1] Burqa: A long garment (usually black) used by Muslim women to drape
their body, with only a grid through which to see.
http://images.google.com/images?q=burqa


<<<   *   >>>
Madhu Menon
Internet User Experience Consultant

Content * Interfaces * Usability * Net Strategy