Uh...wasn't religion here the whole time?

Here's my fisk of the whole thing.

Globalization is turning out to be both a curse and a blessing:

How ironic that you say on the anniversary of September 11th.

During times of limitless communication, everything seems possible -- but nothing is stable. Whether they want to or not, people are swept away by the current of change.

I learned that when I was 15. Or maybe even earlier.

The search for orientation in this world is immense and many people look to religion for support and answers.

Bah humbug. I knew that when I was seven.
Seriously, the reason folks look to religion for support and answers is that religion is the only thing that gives us answers to certain questions, such as "What must I do to be happy?"

Be it the pope, who is celebrated like a pop star in the West,

BXVI is my homie!

or Islamist groups that are finding more followers in the Arab world,

Come ON! Tell us something about the Islamist groups other than that they're growing - we already knew that!

religion is once again an issue.

This is where knowing history would help.
Religion was an issue during the 1980's (see "Poland," "Iran,") and during the Vietnam War (see "Buddhist-Catholic Relations in Vietnam"),to name only two examples.

It gives them spiritual strength.

Undefined pronouns - "it" may be "religion" or "an issue," and "them" refers to a plural verb approximately four clauses away.


But religion is also a power that feeds conflicts and is abused for political interests.

I can name two other powers that feed conflicts and are abused for political interests. (Hint: one has to do with economics, the other with biology.)

What does this return to religion mean in times of globalization?

It means you won't be able to ignore the fact that the vast majority of the world has religious beliefs.

In features, interviews and analyses, Deutsche Welle tries to find answers in this dossier. Please click on the links below to join the search.

"Deutsche Welle tries to find answers....join the search." Sounds like Deutsche Welle is a character from a police drama.

What (you might wonder) possesses me to post this on the sixth anniversary of September 11th?

Well, because the attacks were motivated by religion (specifically, Islam - although a long-suppressed grudge against the West had a great deal to do with it as well). And, if this article means anything, it means that the editors of DW know little about religion, and therefore can hardly be much help in explaining what we have to do to prevent this from happening again.

At least they didn't ask us to convert to Islam. And they didn't use the word "Inquisition," to the great delight of the Sucrose Inquisition.