Just Like Us! Really? (cooking the books on Radical islam)

The Weekly Standard ^ | May 12, 2008 | Robert Satloff

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Gallup says only 7 percent of the world's Muslims are political radicals. Yet 36 percent think the 9/11 attacks were in some way justified.

On the inside back cover of books published by Gallup Press there is the following breathtaking statement:

Gallup Press exists to educate and inform the people who govern, manage, teach and lead the world's six billion citizens. Each book meets Gallup's requirements of integrity, trust and independence and is based on a Gallup-approved science and research.

Don't be distracted by the bad grammar. Focus instead on Gallup's "requirements of integrity, trust and independence." Thanks to a remarkable admission by a coauthor of Gallup's new bestseller Who Speaks for Islam? What a Billion Muslims Really Think, we are now able to know precisely what Gallup's "requirements" really are.

Who Speaks for Islam? is written by John L. Esposito, founding director of Georgetown University's Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, and Dalia Mogahed, executive director of the Gallup Center for Muslim Studies. As the authors state at the outset, the book's goal is to "democratize the debate" about a potential clash between Western and Muslim civilizations by shedding light on the "actual views of everyday Muslims"--especially the "silenced majority" whose views Esposito and Mogahed argue are lost in the din about terrorism, extremism, and Islamofascism.

This majority, they contend, are just like us. They pray like Americans, dream of professional advancement like Americans, delight in technology like Americans, celebrate democracy like Americans, and cherish the ideal of women's equality like Americans. In fact, the authors write, "everyday Muslims" are so similar to ordinary Americans that "conflict between the Muslim and Western communities is far from inevitable."

Similar arguments have been made before; some of this is true, some is rubbish, much is irrelevant. The real debate

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It is hard to understand. Is he a muslim or is he a secularist?

[cyberella]

Download ‘Alms for Jihad’ here

http://mypetjawa.mu.nu/archives/191742.php

This is a book banned by the Saudis that exposes Saudi charaties funding terrorists

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Thank you. Bookmarked.

[Dr. Bogus Pachysandra]

He’s secular, but he grew up in a Muslim society. So many of his views are influenced by his Islamic(sort of) upbringing. My wife was born in Shanghai. She’s been an American citizen for 8 years. You wanna talk about culture clash! You haven’t experienced marital confusion until you’ve been yelled at in Mandarin! You’re helpless! But my point is, people who grew up in totally different societies have a different viewpoint than we Westerners have, but it doesn’t make them all bad.
BTW, if you check my previous postings, you’ll find I’m VERY anti-religious Islamic.