Re: prof combats ignorance about Islam, women

[Andrew Wayne Austin <aaustin@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Kelley,

The religious analogy (achieved by tricky word substitution) is a very old
and tired tactic. I am surprised that the members of a Marxist-feminist
list are exploiting a rightwing anti-communist polemic to attack members
of their alleged community.

If we deprive ourselves of the capacity to make distinctions, then we will
be confronted with people claiming to be Marxist who are in fact
anti-Marxist. Consider feminism. It would, under the logic of your
argument, be a simple matter of anybody claiming they are a feminist, even
if their views were anti-feminist, to cry our that their detractors are
religious zealots. This has happened with big polluters who are claiming
to be environmentalist. Does Monsanto claiming to be environmentalist make
them environmentalist? And if I show that their rhetoric is empty and they
are in fact anti-environmentalist is my critique completely disarmed
because they can swap out words and make an ideological claim that I am a
religious zealot?

I really don't think you have thought this matter through at all. I
believe that the goal of winning a debate by attacking your opponents with
accusations of religious zealotry has preventing you and others from
recognizing that it is not only the ordinary mode of operation to make
judgments about people's views but it is vital that we do so, especially
when it comes to matters as important to popular forces as feminism and
socialism.

Andy

On Wed, 25 Aug 1999, kelley wrote:

>see chaz, substitue a few words and letters and look what happens.  the
>fundamentalist who no longer have a living god in the body of jesus christ,
>say exactly the same thing as you do.