Re: Another political question re: Tuffleverse

In message <Pine.GSO.3.95.iB1.0.1011203151215.16092A-100000@vtn1>
	  Brian Burger <yh728@victoria.tc.ca> wrote:

> One Islamic group I've sort of tossed around	ideas for is a Sufi or
> Sufic-influenced state/nation/subgroup.
> 
> The Sufis are interesting - considerably more open-minded that the
> Saudi/Taliban brand of Islam. I had a Sufi prof when I took Islamic
> History a few years ago, and she was a very interesting person. (Yes,
> *she*. One of the interesting things about Sufic Islam is that it's a
> whole lot less hung up on the role of women than more mainstream
Islam)
> 
> Sufi groups wouldn't enjoy a hardline Islamic Federation very much, so
I
> could see small colonies out there - AE rocks, perhaps. Ther's never
been
> Sufic Islamic government that I know of, but it could take up all the
best
> elements of Islam, not the guns-and-beards conservative mess.
> 
> Something along the lines of the heights of Moorish Spain, or the best
> (admitedly short) eras of the Turkish Caliphate - religious tolerance,
a
> remarkably open society, great respect for scholarship, etc.
> 
> It would be a nice change from everyone's 'Taliban in Space' Islamic
> groups, anyway.
> 
> Brian - yh728@victoria.tc.ca -
> - http://warbard.iwarp.com/games.html -
> 
>
I think this could be very interesting - I've vaguely been toying with
a similar idea myself (along with quite a few other weird ideas, most
haven't got beyond the vague thinking stage though :-( ).

Charles