Amen, sister!

[sr71blackbird]

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[scottinnj]

YES!

I have said for a long time, Muslims need to stand up for themselves and rebuke the zealoutry of their more radical leaders. This is a great debate, the lady just had those Imams SILENCED with her argument.

I am so glad to see I am wrong, and that moderate Muslims in the Middle East are fighting to take back their religion from the nutjobs.
This lady and the others who are on her side deserve our respect, and need our support.

[jetdog]

Wow. I think she is very eloquent (and brave) in her statements, and I agree with her in many ways, but again this discourse between the cultures is mared by sweeping statements such as hers. Were not the Israelis terrorists before their independence? Are Christians really that innocent and forgiving of other faiths? Its so hard to establish a baseline when every major religion has perpetrated attrocities. Except the buddhists I guess, poor bastards, those were some amazing statues.

[jetdog]

Who the hell was that anyway?

[A.J.]

After this broadcast, this lady was stoned to death for being uncovered and without a male guardian.

[Yerdaddy]

Wow. I think she is very eloquent (and brave) in her statements, and I agree with her in many ways, but again this discourse between the cultures is mared by sweeping statements such as hers. Were not the Israelis terrorists before their independence? Are Christians really that innocent and forgiving of other faiths? Its so hard to establish a baseline when every major religion has perpetrated attrocities. Except the buddhists I guess, poor bastards, those were some amazing statues.

QFT. She's preaching againts the need for a "clash of civilizations" but by blaming Muslims for it. There's quite a few ex-Muslims, (mostly women), who have relocated to the west and crticized Islam and gained noteriety for their positions since 9-11. Unfortunately they're usually supported by anti-Muslim advocates like the group that translated this video and put it on YouTube, (MEMRI). That alliance undermines her credibility. To be against your former religion is not unique - nor is it exclusive to Islam. There are many former Christians who convert to Islam and go to the ME and gain attention and status for speaking out against their former religion. These people don't bring understanding between the cultures, but only reinforce the sense of superiority of either side that keeps the conflict going.

This woman is making the same mistakes Michael Moore makes - she makes some good points but goes too far in painting her subjects in manichaean - good vs evil - terms. While condemning Muslims for terrorism she gives the west a free pass - even denies facts - when her opponents question the morality of the west's wars on Islamic countries, colonial histories, support for dictatorships, and even (in another video of her) the extermination of Native Americans, (her response to that was that Christopher Columbus discovered America in 1492, America was created in 1776, so "America cannot be blamed" for what happened to them). The obvious flaws in these arguments will make useless whatever appeal for self-criticism she's leveling at Muslims. She implores them to be honest with themselves but she's not honest herself. She will get more atention from Jews and Christians than Muslims so what's the point?

But most importantly, most Muslims do not fit her description of Muslims as backwards supporters of terrorism. Most Muslims, while not as eloquent as she is, are in fact much more moderate than she is and want nothing to do with a clash of civilizations. In fact, until the US over-reacted to 9-11 terrorism was a reflection of a clash within Islam itself between a majority of moderates and a small minority of extremists. What we've done is sideline the moderates and often treated them like extremists, but always treated them as cowardly and silent children who will follow whoever propagandizes them first - us or the terrorists. But the fact is they aren't silent - as the endless page of Mulim condemnations of 9-11 hosted on the State Dept website should have shown us - and they aren't mindless pawns as anyone who travels to the ME can tell you. They're normal rational people living their own lives and wishing those forcing these conflicts would just go away. The problem is that their voices - the voices of the true moderates of Islam - are not heard in the west because we don't find them interesting, (sensational or self-validating enough). We only want to hear from people who love us or hate us, and so that's all we hear from. And so the clash of civilizations continues.

[high fly]

Why is anyone surprised that one of the 1,300,000,000+ Muslims who are not participating in terrorism is speaking out against it?

I'll tell you why.
Because these folks are susceptible to every dumbass cliche uttered by the likes of Rush Limpbaugh and Shawn Manatee and never take the time to really find out the truth.
And they never learn.
No matter how many times they repeat that drivel on forums such as this and get humiliated, they keep going to the same poisoned well expecting the next time will be different.
They are like a child that keeeps touching a hot stove untill all of it's fingers are mere nubs of melted flesh, yet they never stop touching the damned thing...........

[SatCam]

They let women on tv now over there?