Good shit, man! Good to see others are studying that area too. And I think we can all agree that Buddhism is a recognized religion, even if it differs from the more common theological religions such as Islam and Christianity. I'm only saying this to set the record straight so you guys can stop arguing about it and move along without getting at each other's throats.
Please, just let it go. It fits the dictionary definition of religion whether or not you count it as one, and there's not really any point arguing about it anyway. Even if they did just do that, it's still an affect of their buddhism for better or for worse.
Hope this won't hijack the thread, but here's a video I thought brought up good points. [youtube]MXLGyOdE_tc[/youtube]
There are plenty of reasons I don't agree with, but many people think any sort of welfare on part of the government, including disaster relief, is wrong. I understand where they're coming from but I think some, including disaster relief, is necessary.
What are those reasons? I don't think I've ever met anyone who has a problem with government disaster relief.
You'd be surprised. I was too. But I honestly think for those people it's just based around the idea that welfare is an institution of pity, and that governments should not be involved in people's affairs. Otherwise I couldn't really tell you how those people think. I would imagine they have their reasons.
I don't know how the American welfare system works but over here, as long as you know ways around working, you can be on welfare for your entire life here.