[Big Papa Goat]

I don't think Islam is inheritly more violent, but they didn't ever have the secular Renaissance that the West had. Chirstianity, or more specifically Europe grew out of their religiously inspired violence and opression because of the increased secularism in government and daily affairs. Islam has never been a paticularly violent religion, but their mistreatment of women and general fundamentalism (in theocratic Islamic states) does show how their religion and soceity has failed to progress as much as Western Christian civilization has.

And speaking of violence and opression of women, what about witch hunts? Didn't Germany have around 100 000 women killed for witchcraft in some century? And the Spanish Inquisition killed more than a few people. And lets not forget the Crusades, where many were killed, enslaved or burned out of house and home in the name of Christianity.

Considering when the witch hunts took place, perhaps it was the 18th century Enlightenment rather than the Renaissance that really secularized and civilized the West. And of course the Islamic world hasn't had any Enlightenment era.


In conclusion- Secularism hasn't set in for Islamic nations yet. If secularism hadn't set in for the West, we'd be just as bad, or worse. Therefore, too much religion is bad, whether it is Islam, Buddhism, Christianity or whatnot. The question is, why hasn't the Islamic world secularized?