Islam and certainly the Muslim world is not a monolith. Most of the Muslims including Somalis here in Minnesota and Malays and Indonesians in their countries have no interest in imposing sharia law or wiping out Jews. Most don’t see it as a war of civilizations between Islam and the West. This is why though the fear of Muslims such as saying that we should not allow them to immigrate to the US or treating them collectively with suspicion is. I’ll repeat it again yes Twitter and other social media can find tons of examples of extremists and Muslims doing terrible things. You can also fill a social media feed with Christians or even Buddhists doing terrible things.
100% Truth. Most of them are not even Muslim by choice they just go along so as to avoid being shunned, or shouted down. Islam is a bully pulpit, it is an extremely flawed religion that uses brute force to grow it's numbers - it is not a religion of peace, by any stretch. Evangelical Christians are exactly the same as Islamists - two different sides of the same coing. Both are bad for mankind. DD
If you say "They're not even muslims" for the people who identify themselves as Muslims, you really need help.
I left out a couple of words, I meant to say....'They are not Muslim by choice" but rather are bullied into going along to avoid issues with those in charge. Islam is a bully pulpit...... DD
Yeaaah... I should stay far and away out of this, but... if, say, a moderate muslim wants to counter this guy's message in the OP, I think it would go like this. 1. He overplays the sense of "backwardness" -- I don't think history supports a luddite picture of their faith, and even just speaking from experience, I know all sorts of practicing muslims who are great scientists, technologists, etc. That point of his seems especially weak, but I could be wrong, as I'm ignorant to some of the faith's inner workings. As I've said, I did take a couple of college courses, and I slept in a Holiday Inn Express, but still ignorant. 2. A moderate muslim might say (and I think many do): "If our faith is so sick, why is it so popular, pervasive, and growing steadily? And yes, we have some bad apples, but that just comes with having 2 billion members." I don't really have a counter to such a position. Finally, given so many members, I don't have high hopes for some sort of internal dialogue or some sort of self-moderation on behalf of a whole world-wide faith. Human like to group in smaller segments, so it's hard to find some supreme authority that would speak to 2 billion people and unify them somehow. One person says "we have to deal with the cray cray in our midst. Bad PR. Will lead to wars," and a bunch of others say, "well the cray cray is not even in my segment of Islam. So I can ignore you, dude."
Let's assume what you've posted is 100% truth for a second. How does that apply to the people who live in the US and identify themselves as muslims?
That they have chosen a path of following a mythology - and one that is inherently flawed, They have that right to follow though, just as Satanists do.....some people are wired to be followers...... DD
There are about 1.7 billion Muslims in the world. There are more Muslims in the Far East than in the Mid East. I will say that the culture of Islam is very different than in the West, and in many places where Islam is practiced - it is acceptable for it to be the only religion or to have the nation be ruled based on the rules of Islam. Islam is a little different in that it is both a culture and a religion. However, those that are Islamic and in the West long term, typically adopt Western values and beliefs. Muslims should be able to immigrate to the USA - however, I will give a caveat. I do believe that when you have massive immigration from one region of the world, it can cause growth pains. It is also an issue we are seeing in Europe, where there are so many Muslims that there is a lot of social pressure on Muslims in England to be extremists. People do terrible things - but I have zero desire to live in a country that gives any social or governmental influence to Islam. Dealing with fundamentalist Christians and Jews in the USA is already over-bearing.
They have the right to be Muslim and to practice Islam. If they push for a theocracy or they espouse hateful or repressive views - then they should expect criticism like anyone else.
The Muslims you encounter in academia in the US are likely VERY different from the ones you encounter on the streets of Berlin, Paris, London, Stockholm, Brussels, Copenhagen, etc. Unfortunately, the former are greatly outnumbered by the latter.
This is very much true.... and it also depends on what generation they are in the West and where on the globe they are from. There has actually comparatively very little issues with Muslims in the USA, especially when compared to Western Europe.
Evangelical Christians are just as bad - any religion which seeks to control people is inherently bad for mankind. DD
They are not "just as bad" in 2023 because they don't do suicide bombibgs, don't throw gays off of roofs, don't mass murder and rape Jewish people, etc.
