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To: Yehuda
So I suppose because there are no such demonstrations we should give up trying to help build a humane and democratic society in Afghanistan and Iraq? Should we exclude even the possibility of an enlightened version of Islam? Should we just nuke all the inhabitants of Afghanistan and Iraq because they are Moslems, or should we try to continue the great long term project of President Bush in trying to help the Moslems see a better way? The President and National Security Rice have a wiser and more prudent course than those who simply want to write off Moslems as a whole.
79 posted on 10/27/2003 3:16:46 PM PST by Unam Sanctam
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To: Unam Sanctam
Should we exclude even the possibility of an enlightened version of Islam?

Of course not. In my view, however, it is important to keep up the pressure against islamism (and islamic chauvanism more generally) and at the same time encourage and defend mainstream/moderate/modernist/secularist/traditionalist/minority sect muslims. The carrot and the stick should work together.

An overly tolerant (politically-correct/muliculturalist) approach to Islam ultimately provides space for the islamic extremists to disperse their poison, and allows them to slither into positions of leadership that are sponsored and recognized by the multiculturalist intelligencia, but not genuinely earned in the broader muslim community.

While individual muslims must be protected, and their individual and religious rights must be protected, Islam itself should NOT be protected from external criticism. Such criticism will serve, IMHO, to strengthen diversity, creativity and tolerance within Islam, and spur the development of internal criticism as well. This is what happened with Christianity, which both liberalized (in the best sense of the term) and realized renewed vigor and fecundity under the withering criticism of enlightenment skepticism.

91 posted on 10/27/2003 4:24:49 PM PST by Stultis
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To: Unam Sanctam
Should we exclude even the possibility of an enlightened version of Islam?

Yes. The truest islam that the world has seen for centuries was the taliban. The koran commands the islamics to be murderers and terrorists. The religion cannot be reformed and still be islam.

Ann Coulter had it right, we need to invade their countries, kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity. That is the only way to fix the islam problem.

140 posted on 10/28/2003 5:32:46 AM PST by John O (God Save America (Please))
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