Daniel J. Pipes

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Reader comment on item: [Fixing] Islam's Image Problem

Submitted by David C (United States), May 14, 2004 at 22:36

While the founders of the U.S. felt that they were guided by divine providence in their struggle for a democratic state, they were also smart enough to know that religious tolerance was necessary in order for this country to survive.

Like many things the founding fathers could not have predicted, this religious tolerance has forced modern Americans to walk on egg shells and mince words when faced with the obvious: Some religions - by their inherent precepts - are not such a welcome ingredient in the recipe of democracy. Islam is one of these - every bit as much as Christianity would have been during the Crusades.

To state that Islam is a religion of peace is a pure falsehood. Skim the Koran, speak at length with a devout Muslim and try to get them to condem - publicly- the acts of other Muslims (regardless of how terrible the act.)

Islam works well in the middle east, where governments can intertwine the teachings of Islam with governmental policy. It does not fly here.

Remember: America is not a country - it is an "idea". Anyone , Jew, Arab, Irishman, African or Swede, can become American, so long as you buy into the idea.

Islam can not tolerate the American idea. There are just too many contradictions between things that Muslims consider "evil" and Americans look at as "freedoms".

The two can not survive in the same society.






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Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome but not comments that are scurrilous, off-topic, commercial, disparaging religions, or otherwise inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the "Guidelines for Reader Comments".

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