Saturday, March 01, 2008

What It Means To Be A "Moderate Muslim"

AFP:

A huge survey of the world's Muslims released Tuesday challenges Western notions that equate Islam with radicalism and violence.

Hmm.

About 93 percent of the world's 1.3 billion Muslims are moderates and only seven percent are politically radical, according to the poll, based on more than 50,000 interviews.

But how does this poll agree with this one from last year where majorities in four Muslim countries wanted to apply sharia in their nations.

Here are the numbers:

  • Morocco: 76%
  • Egypt: 74%
  • Pakistan: 79%
  • Indonesia: 53%

These four nations have a combined population of 500 million.

Let's look at a key paragraph from the AFP story:

"Muslims want self-determination, but not an American-imposed and -defined democracy. They don't want secularism or theocracy. What the majority wants is democracy with religious values," said Esposito.

Ah, so a Muslim who doesn't support secularism but wishes to apply sharia (or large parts of it) is still a moderate!

How comforting.

Also see this post from last year.

As one can see, terrorism is a small part of the problem. The major issue is the fusion of religion and politics in Islam. The global Muslim community (the umma) does wish for a grand theocracy.

That's certainly not comforting. Most Muslims won't openly support Al Qaeda or its derivatives but then what about sharia? Sharia is made up of retrograde, superstitious and barbaric laws. It, by its very nature, requires force and coercion.

Just take a brief look at the heart of Sunni and Shia Islam.

Read it all.

1 comment:

Michael Travis said...

"Politics" and "Democracy" as defined by Americas are unknown and unwanted in the Islamic world. Even more importantly, these foreign concepts are viewed as non-Islamic expressions of apostasy.....and we know what happens to Apostates.

As uncomfortable as it may be, we must step back and take a realistic and sober look at our situation...the Muslims certainly have;

http://www.riseofislam.com

Until we can admit that we have been misled and betrayed by our own Islamist in Evangelical clothing we will continue down the road to an Islamic Post-America.

www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/
2001/09/20010917-11.html

Bush worships the Saudi regime and has allowed them to de-construct our Republic....and we allowed it to happen by our ignorance and primitiveness. President Obama on the other hand is far better educated and worldly than Bush and he will not cater to the Saudis.......we will become another Libya under his dictatorship.

And we deserve no better, as we have rejected our responsibilities as citizens.

Thomas Jefferson once said “the price of freedom is eternal
vigilance”. He was not referring to vigilance of potential outside enemies of the country, he was referring to vigilance of our own elected leaders.

Peace