There are one and a half BILLION Muslims in the world which means that even if there are fifteen thousand who exhibit "this sort of thinking," that means that the violent radicals are LITERALLY one in a million.
i'm not arguing with these numbers..i just don't know if they're true. do you have a source? and beyond that...one doesn't have to be affiliated with a terrorist organization to support their cause...or to have leanings similar to theirs. those sorts of things are unknown. that's why i think it's vital that clerics and imans stand up and call this crap out...it's way too prevalent...and frankly, it's hijacked a faith.
Umm..... err..... You're math ain't right, bubba. This does nothing to detract from your confidence and condescension however. Congrats on that! andymoon, please do the following exercise and report your answer: 1,500,000,000 / 15,000 thanks in advance
Let me put this in an unpopular perspective...but truthful. OJ Simpson. Blacks in America are historically persecuted. Blacks see Rodney King. Blacks see an overwhelming disproportionate amount of their own kind on death row. Blacks felt a sense of triumph over a system that has and continuesly repressed their own kind when OJ was acquitted. Blacks ARE NOT happy to see the death of an innocent person. I don't know this...but maybe the Arab people see this as a victory of sorts. Nobody, except the truely evil, like to see innocent people die. But when your own people are dying at a faster rate you don't openly object the death of one individual unless you want to be viewed as taking sides with the enemy. If a black man killed a KKK leader, you would hear very few black people, if any, say anything negative. You'd hear silence...but not codemnation. Lets look at this another way. If a father murdered his daughter's rapist, do you think the mother would publicaly object? No...she would say..."no comment." If you want to hear codemnation from Arab nations, then America must stop the cycle of violence. (Oh, and stop taking pictures of tortured prisoners.) Until then, you'll hear silence. I'm not talking about ultimate right vs. wrong. I'm talking about unavoidable human nature.
all of that is fine and well..but they have a religion to save. a faith to save. a faith they hold sacred. and it's being polluted big time right about now...at the very least, the perception of it is being polluted. of course america isn't perfect...and of course the pictures were ridiculous. but that doesn't excuse this. and the difference is that in america, we'll have the outrage...that's what i'm calling for...the outrage. that's what i'm hoping to see/hear. and mcmark's post gives me some hope in that department.
There might be more than 15,000 who sympathize, but do you really believe that there are more than 15,000 who are actually willing to perform a suicide bombing? The one and a half billion Muslims is a fact, I just pulled the 15,000 out of the air for an example, but it seems like a good number to work with. It doesn't seem to me that there could be many more than that who are willing to kill innocent people and perhaps themselved based on the perversion of their faith. I am just making the observation that a relatively small percentage of Muslims support these kinds of actions, just as a relatively small percentage of Christians support things like bombing abortion clinics or killing doctors. Even if I correct my math for missing the decimal point, that would mean that .001% of muslims are radical enough to perform a suicide bombing. If a hundred times as many sympathize, then it is still only .1% of the entire Muslim population.
I agree. I know far too many generous, kind, insightful people who follow the Muslim faith. I've spent a fair bit of time in Muslim countries and this crap simply does not mesh with what i've experienced. Yet it certainly is prevalent on the airwaves. Enough is enough. They should publically condemn this crap and stand up for everything that's good about their faith.
I think the number would be much higher than you expect for people willing to carry out a suicide bombing, and even higher for people who sympathize with them.... From the Koran: 'And when the sacred months are passed, kill those who join other gods with God wherever ye shall find them; and seize them, besiege them, and lay wait for them with every kind of ambush.' And this: 'Believers! Wage war against such of the infidels as are your neighbors, and let them find you rigorous.' I mean, this is what's being emphasized nowby the radical clerics all over the world, and their numbers are growing. By the way, I hope nobody thinks I post that quote to try and show that this is a tenent of the majority in Islam. If taken in context of having respect for the dignity of man, life's goal of peace, and all of the wonderful tenets that are to be found in Islam, this quote wouldn't be a factor.
