Saying that example disproves the grandparent is being pedantic.
What they were saying was that "if Joe Sixpack and Mohammed can communicate with each other, [more often] they won't sit idly by while the fear-mongers [...]"
The counter-example of single-language conflict ignores the larger forest of language being a key leveller of cultural differences (i.e. necessary but not sufficient), as well as gp's obviously statistical rather than absolute example.
It's pretty clear he or she wasn't saying that 'as long as two people speak the same language, there will never be conflict between them.'
What they were saying was that "if Joe Sixpack and Mohammed can communicate with each other, [more often] they won't sit idly by while the fear-mongers [...]"
The counter-example of single-language conflict ignores the larger forest of language being a key leveller of cultural differences (i.e. necessary but not sufficient), as well as gp's obviously statistical rather than absolute example.
It's pretty clear he or she wasn't saying that 'as long as two people speak the same language, there will never be conflict between them.'