Islam, Religion of Peace, Part 2
Continuing on the topic of yesterday's post, The View From 1776 has more analysis of Islam and the current geopolitical situation here. One particular point he makes that is worth repeating here is that of course there are many individual Muslims who are staunchly opposed to terrorism and mistreatment of non-Muslims, and I would add that it is not right to hold present-day Muslims accountable for the crimes of their forbears.
That said, the bulk of the evidence from opinion surveys, muted and even positive reactions to terrorist attacks in many Muslim nations, and general attitudes toward non-Muslim minorities in these nations shows that these "moderate" Muslim voices, if they exist in significant numbers, have effectively no voice in making domestic or foreign policy. Those nations that are generally considered most "Westernized," such as Turkey, still conduct persecutions of minority groups (i.e., the Kurds), while the few nations that have legally-enforced tolerance, such as Iran, are happy to do so when over 98 percent of the country is already Muslim. If anyone knows of a Muslim-majority society with significant religious minorities where such groups exist in peace, harmony, and demographic stability, please let me know.
View From The Right also tackles this issue here and elsewhere. The excerpted passage from Robert Klein Engler demands reading in full here - it's rare indeed to find someone able to write with this degree of honesty, openness and courage about the current "War on Terror." Here's one paragraph I might have cited the other day:
"The West against Islam is nothing new. What’s new is that because of oil, the conflict has now expanded to the New World. There are no radical Muslims, nor Islamo-Fascists, there are just Muslims doing what they have always done--spreading Islam by force and terror. Compare the spread of Islam with that of Buddhism, and the truth of this history becomes obvious."
The truth hurts sometimes, but far better to confront it openly and with the courage of one's own convictions than to cover ones eyes and ears, as the English have done, and pretend that the problem simply doesn't exist.
