Re: Religious Tolerance (Shias and Sunnis)
I think there’s no absolute tolerance found in any community of the world. Humans are basically intolerant, impatient. Mostly they tolerate what suits them or what doesn’t oppose their lifestyle or ideology.
For example a number of masjids in NYC or somewhere else in the USA, a Muslim worshipper spreading a praying mat along the roadside in the West, don’t stop them from practising their life style, don’t stop them from believing in gay rights or sex on consent with anyone, or a group of Tablighi Jama’at or Green Turban Guys (Barelvis, Sufis etc) don’t pose any threat to the Western civilization..so they are quite tolerant towards them. Tablighis and Barelvis get American visas easily!
But you can’t raise funds for Al-Qaida or Taliban on the soil of America no matter how much you assure them that you or these organizations have nothing to do with terrorism and it’s all about fake media reporting. They won’t listen to you. They will put you on trial and throw in a jail. Very intolerant indeed!
Iranian Shias are hard core fascists. Even the moderate shias of Iran hate them because of their strict sectarian policies.
I think same is the case with Saudi rulers for their intolerance and bulldozing mazaraats and other historical places. Whoever gets power tries to suppress the ideology he dislikes.