From MSNBC. Though they could start by working on their own people who give their faith a bad name, like the Saudis and their highly sectarian and provocative Wahabbism (a minority among the world’s Muslims), bin Laden and his ilk, get Ahmadinejad to tone it down a scooch, introduce those radical madrasa schools a little bit into the Reality-Based Community, stuff like that.
Then, just try to understand where “libertarian” Westerners are coming from: today’s Western Christianity and “post-Christianity” are built on the foundation of the Rennaissance of Classical pagan Greek and Roman culture, which was much aided by translations of Classics via the Muslim world at the height of its own culture. As an Orthodox Christian, I see alot of problems with this too, but it’s there and it’s highly influential around the world now.
If the Islamic Conference just tries to beat countries over the head it doesn’t like with international law, they’re more likely to drive more countries into the U.S. camp, which largely disdains international law. Then nobody benefits, as the Iraqis and Saddam Hussein have learned, and the Iranians may yet learn, sadly.
Maybe what they should do is work domestically, within countries, based on their own existing legal systems and parliaments. Form “Anti-Defamation Leagues” in each country, like Jewish folks have in the U.S.
I personally have a growing problem with growing Muslim influence in the West, in particular the retrograde influence of Saudi / Wahabbist and other radical ideologies who take advantage of “liberal” Western immigration, speech, and publishing laws to oppose Western values, societies, and people’s lives and safety, and so-called honor killings (aka revenge vendettas). But I oppose all false rhetoric, and favor critiques based only on truth. In a Western country, if you can prove slander or libel in court, you can win some kind of award. As for non-Muslim cartoonists or their publishers who violate Muslim rules, well, you shouldn’t just expect people who don’t belong to your religion to follow its rules, any more than Jews expect non-Jews to keep kosher; you have to inculcate genuine sensitivity. We do that with White police; there’s no reason rational Muslim representatives can’t peacefully ask to meet with Western periodical publishers, etc., and help them voluntarily become more sensitive to your religion’s concerns, just like any other growing minority religion here. But does a problem in Denmark have to provoke violence in Pakistan and the East Indies? Is that reasonable? Isn’t that just “Westophobia”?
OTOH, if you come to the West, you implicitly agree to the rough-and-tumble of Western democracy and political “dialogue,” which sometimes is “in your face” and offensive. I oppose gratuitous, senseless offensiveness, but sometimes legitimate critique and questioning will offend, but in the end is helpful. Where’s the rationalism and reasonableness of Medieval Islam, the cultural height of your civilization? There were limits to potentially-scandalous criticism, but there was also literary give-and-take. Embrace the best of your heritage; we’re supposed to embrace the best of ours as Westerners; challenge us to do so.
There’s productive confrontation, and there’s just unproductive point-scoring. The latter feels good only for a short time, like self-gratification; the former can bring significant, permanent improvement for everybody concerned. Ask American Jews and Blacks.
Insofar as “Islamophobia” is a “phobia,” it is an irrational fear, one not based in reality, and so in theory has a psychotherapeutic treatment and cure, even on a societal scale. Outlawing it through the UN won’t cure it, only make it worse. Treat the phobia, show it to be irrational and not based in reality. What Westerners fear is terrorism, war, weapons of mass destruction, violence, unruly mobs, senseless property damage, intolerance, any real loss of rights or freedom or democracy, threats to their elected governments and to what they value in their own historic cultures, etc. Is this unreasonable, irrational? Don’t Muslims fear the same things? Yet Westerners feel these things are being threatened by some people in the name of Islam, rightly or wrongly. Help us out, please.
Then again, if all you’re going to be about is avenging 800 years of Western victories over Muslims, well then I guess it’ll be World War 3 and the end of everything. Then the Promised One will come, and we’ll see who was right. Is that it? Do you want the same thing as American Fundamentalists, Armageddon?
Why can’t we both choose peace?
