Ayesha and Jaladhi are right

Submitted by Jane (United States), Dec 27, 2005 at 18:42

Your article and the remarks by Ayesha and Jaladhi are wise and true. Education is the only answer but some cultures are centuries behind and we want them to catch up now.

A Muslim gave me a tape he'd made of Beavis and Butthead (?) saying it was a true depiction of American society. Muslims don't even think Americans have a culture. They treasure their antiquated, failed culture for the promises it makes, while blaming their personal failures on anyone they know who is Westernized and therefore hindering the fullfillment of those heavenly promises.

I wish Americans saw a clear, honest picture of Eastern cultures - corruption, violence and all, and an honest account of the good and growth Western culture brought about in Eastern culture over centuries. In the Indian TV series, The Sword of Tipu Sultan, a fabulous almost mythical account of the moghuls fighting off the inhumane, awful Britishers leaves a very distorted and dishonest picture of history. We tend to be self depricating, while those who long for the return of the moghuls tend to see only the glory and romance of Allah in their own bloody history.

How can Eastern men ever hear news that gives equal value to the words and thoughts of women, nonbelievers and Jews? This is a major hurdle for the uneducated man who was born into the beliefs and culture of Islam. "Raise a child in the way he should go and when he is old he will not depart from it"; and, we learn the most during the first 6 years of our lives - therefore even perfectly intelligent educated Arabs today still hold to mom's teachings - no matter what logic tells them. The truth needs to be repeated over and over again - much more than it is.

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