Comments by "janburn007" (@janburn007) on "Peter Santenello" channel.

I really enjoyed watching this video about Mexico City - just one city with almost as many people as in my entire country! And the guide, Lalo, really made it what it is. He comes across as a truly honest, genuine, & personable/likeable guy, with a great sense of humour, & an excellent command of the English language. Who wouldn't want someone like that as a guide around Mexico City? Lalo is prepared to go almost everywhere - even to parts of the city he himself has never been before. And he helps show the country as it is - the good & the bad. As with many Latin-American & Spanish-speaking countries it is often the outgoing & friendly nature of the people themselves who really make the country what it is, from the visitor's point of view, even in some of the poorer parts of the city/country. I guess that for someone who had gone to live in Australia for 7 years, from a place like Mexico City - Australia would indeed seem very dull, quiet & uneventful, compared with the usual hustle, bustle & continuous action of a place like Mexico City, with all its contrasts. I loved Lalo's joke about Australia only being interesting if you live close to nature & those dangerous, wild animals that might kill you - I guess that would have creates the excitement he was missing! Thanks for showing us around your home city, Lalo - a great tour!
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That was certainly a very nice video about Muslims - but it really did not give much of an insight into the beliefs & teachings of the religion of Islam. I have several Muslim friends (with differing levels of devoutness), & I don't have anything at all against Muslims as people, but I've always said, if you want to learn about a religion - you need to learn about the actual beliefs & teachings of that religion. And the best way to do that is not necessarily by just asking a follower of that religion (where one may perhaps get a slightly biased &/or not well informed representation) - but by going straight to the scriptures & acknowledged holy books of that particular religion. So, if one wants to learn about the teachings of Christianity - one should read the entire Bible for oneself. If one wants to learn the beliefs & teachings of Islam - one should read the Quran & at least some of the hadiths. What I have found from reading those books, is that because Islam came some 300 - 400 years after Christianity, the Quran actually does get some of the Biblical stories quite wrong - particularly in relation to Mary (the mother of Jesus, in the Bible), & how she was related to other Biblical characters. Although the Imam indicated that they view Islam as a sort of continuation of Christianity - unlike in the Bible, Islam does not believe that Jesus is the son of God - it sees him only as a prophet, & a slightly less important one than Mohammed. Islam does not teach the same things about Jesus as the Bible & therefore does not believe the same things about Jesus as Christianity. So if Jesus is not the son of god in Islam - how can Islam believe that it worships the same god as Christianity - when one god has a son & the other does not? How can Christians believe they worship the same god as Judaism, when Jesus is the Messiah in Christianity, but Judaism is still waiting for its Messiah? Although it is claimed that Judaism, Christianity & Islam have the same Abrahamic origins, they obviously do not worship the same gods - they worship very different gods, with different teachings & beliefs straight from their own scriptures. In order for someone to become a follower of a particular religion, what is important, I believe, is not necessarily how nice or hospitable the followers of a particular religion might be (because they may not always be fully aware of the teachings of their religion - especially if they have been born into it, or underwent a very quick conversion process, without fully investigating all the beliefs & teachings of that religion). What is important, is the actual beliefs & teachings of those religions, from their holy books/scriptures. If you can believe absolutely everything the religion teaches in its scriptures, then you have good reason to become a follower of that religion. If you cannot believe everything the religion teaches in its scriptures, then you cannot truly call yourself a follower of that religion. One cannot simply cherry-pick the bits one wishes to believe, & then say one does not believe other beliefs/teachings of the religion, but still call oneself a follower of that religion. The very fact that one does not believe certain beliefs/teachings of the religion, means that one does not follow that religion. Judaism, Christianity, & Islam indeed do have similar teachings in some areas - for example on some controversial issues like abortion, homosexual practices, same-sex marriage etc. But for some reason, it is mainly Christianity that usually gets a bad rap in the media for its teachings on those issues - while no-one seems to mention that Judaism & Islam also teach the same on those issues. I think there are 3 possible reasons for this. The first could be that those in the media are just totally ignorant, when it comes to knowing about the beliefs of Judaism & Islam on those same issues. The second is that, although they may be aware that Judaism & Islam have the same beliefs on those issues - the media has a double standard when it comes to the way they treat those religions. So it's okay for Judaism & Islam to have those beliefs, but it's not okay for Christianity to have those same beliefs. Perhaps they see Christianity as a "superior" religion which should have "better" beliefs than Judaism & Islam. They may think that Christianity should change its beliefs, to align with those of the secular western world. The third reason is that they may fear a backlash - because openly criticising the beliefs of what are minority religions in western countries, is usually seen to be "politically incorrect", & perceived as racist & discriminatory, whereas it's seen as okay to criticise Christianity for those same beliefs, particularly in western countries which have been traditionally Christian. One of the main reasons why Islam is growing as a religion, is not because people are necessarily converting to the religion (although indeed, there are converts) - but the majority of the growth is because Muslim families tend to be larger & have more children - especially in countries where Islam is the majority religion. I do understand why some Muslims were/are resentful of the scrutiny under which they were placed, after the events of 9/11. Obviously the majority of Muslims are good people, & only a very small minority actually commit acts of terrorism. But how can any government discern who is a good person/Muslim & who might be potential terrorists (from amongst those arriving from middle-eastern countries), without placing all such people under scrutiny? I think it's a difficult task indeed.
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I think Sikhs are generally a very well-respected group of people & the men are usually easily recognisable by their turbans. Some of the more modern Sikh male turban styles are becoming a bit "smaller" these days & some Sikh men choose not to wear a turban at all - but may choose to wear all or some of the other "5 K's" (symbols) of their religion - such as the metal bangle, the small sword/dagger, the undergarment etc. While the average American person would probably not know much about Sikhi (what Sikhs themselves usually call their religion - at least in the UK they do) & the teachings of their religion - it's generally quite a tolerant & peaceful religion, even though there is also the concept that Sikhs are a "warrior" religion & have been excellent soldiers/warriors in times of war. Whilst they don't actually proselytise for converts as such - there are definitely converts to Sikhi, & I know that in the UK there have been active campaigns & public events by the Sikh community, to inform the public of just what it is that Sikhs actually believe, as far as their religion is concerned - though with the intention to inform, not convert. The Sikh community also takes an active part in local community events & festivities, where they will often be walking around, handing out free snacks & water to people. You also see them out there assisting in times of natural disasters. What I like about Sikhi is that everyone is welcome in their gurdwara's (temples), provided they are respectful & remove their shoes & cover their heads (both men & women). Everyone sits on the floor in their temples (because everyone is equal), usually with women on one side of the aisle & men on the other. I also like their charitable concept of langar (free food) being available for everyone, at their temples. I also very much like the idea that Sikhs are there to help, & because they are so often readily identifiable by their turbans, could be called upon for assistance if needed. Sikhs are not meant to cut any of their bodily hair ("kesh"). For men, that includes their moustaches & beards, as well as the hair on their heads. That is why you sometimes see Sikh men with very long flowing beards & moustaches & their long hair on their heads is covered by their turbans. That same rule about cutting hair applies to Sikh women as well & although female Sikhs can also wear turbans - it is probably rather unusual that you would see a female Sikh wearing a turban, unless she is especially devout, or perhaps a type of Sikh preacher (yes - in Sikhi there are some female preachers/teachers). When you see Sikh families out together, it is usually only the males in the family who are wearing turbans. But the other day when I caught the tram home from the city, I was actually very surprised to see a young Sikh girl (about 20 years old) wearing a full turban.
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Even if Titus' birth certificate may have been destroyed, he could probably always apply to the authorities for a replacement birth certificate if he needed one. So it's not as though he's entirely without any identification documents. Unlike with a social security number/record, you can't just ask the authorities to remove the record of your birth from the register of births - unless you can somehow prove to them that the birth never actually occurred. And it may be that if he asked the appropriate authority, he could probably get his social security record re-instated as well. He may well also have some sort of taxation record, which could serve s a form of ID. He probably would have needed to provide some form of ID, in order to get his land-line phone installed.
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I almost can't believe that he has to pay $90 per month just for a land-line phone - even though he gets internet with that (which he does not use). For that price, I would want an awful lot of internet! I pay $20 per month for a land-line with no internet as well as $10 per month for a mobile phone with 4GB internet as well as unlimited within the country phone calls & texting. So $90 per month for a land-line seems extortionate!
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@SeecondToNone1 Wow - that's atrocious! In my country, if a national land-line phone company provides coverage in a certain area/region of the country, they have to provide that service at the same standard cost for the same phone plan, as they would in any other part of the country (& there are some very remote/rural areas in my country). So the same standard phone plans with each company apply right across the country. And even if there is only one phone company that provides coverage in a certain region, that service has to be provided at the same cost per phone plan, as in any other area - even in a metropolitan area.
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Of course, Titus DOES actually have a legal identity - even though he may not have any documentation currently in his possession to prove it. When documents of identity are lost/stolen/destroyed - there is always a procedure in place for getting such documents replaced. Titus could probably easily apply to have his birth certificate replaced if he wanted to - it's just that he has not had a need to do so as yet. But that does not mean that he has no legal identity. Everyone in the US these days - especially someone of Titus' age/generation has a legal identity - it's just a matter of obtaining the necessary documentation to confirm it.
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So very true...
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If one wants to know what the religion of Islam truly believes & teaches - all one needs to do is to read the Quran & at least some of the hadiths oneself. You won't necessarily get the full story about what Islam actually teaches, from just speaking with Muslims - because there are plenty of Muslims that have not actually read all of the Quran/hadiths for themselves. So if one wants to know what Islam really teaches - just read their scriptures (Quran & hadiths) oneself. The Quran is not even as big as the Bible - so it's not difficult to read it all. If you read the Quran for yourself, some of the teachings in that book, may actually surprise you.
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