Stephen Mooney (Letters, July 17) says that if Islam is a religion of peace it should move toward an evolution to make it consistent with modern Western values, and then in an opinion piece by Annie Young in the preceding page reference is made to our "Western values" government's response to asylum seekers and Scott Morrison's preference that people face the executioner in their country of origin rather than drowning at sea. 

What are our "Western values", anyway?

Looking away from suffering so we cannot see it? Covering our ears so we cannot hear it?

Or is it having politicians whose weasel words are spoken in riddles and lies by omission? Or valuing money much greater than the society money is meant to serve?

I was fortunate enough to spend more than 20 years in Melanesian society, and guess what?

No old and lonely people at village level; everyone is catered for. No dirt-poor villagers; they are all poor but share the bounty of their gardens and the sea as best they can. 

Sure, there are entrepreneurs and those who have more than others, but the most selfish and least generous are the ones chasing "Western values" above all else.

If that is a desirable outcome, perhaps Mr Mooney should visit Port Moresby or Honiara or indeed Manila to see for himself how imposed values of any kind distort and destroy cultures that existed nicely for millennia before the good Western change merchants decided they had better values and better gods than the locals.

More than 200 people live permanently in Port Moresby's rubbish tip; so-called rascal gangs rob, bash and rape to get their share of the booty coming from the industry, commerce and trade in their country because there are certainly no jobs to allow youth participation and anyway, huge profits and fat shareholder returns are "Western values" to be maintained at all cost.

Go to Honiara and see for yourself how the growth industry of tourism has spawned another growth industry in prostitution and has given the girls a great taste of "Western values", complete with HIV, syphilis, and everything else you can imagine.

Or drop in to Victoria and see how we are helping the homeless by giving them a sleeping bag of lesser value than a feed at Mason's. Really, a sleeping bag, but stay on the street because we really don't want you in mainstream society.

Islam is certainly in need of modernisation, but perhaps we should take a deep breath and decide if we are without sin ourselves before we cast our stones.

I am not so sure that our application of our so-called values is all that it is said to be and it is certainly not what we tell the world we are.

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