I suspect in time, Islamism will go the way of Christianity. In my lifetime, the church's roles in ones life has diminished dramatically. Many never give it a thought.

I still remember as a child, when learning to crochet, being told it was a sin to work on Sundays. Still remember the debate that comment caused in the household *Over Christmas, house was filled with family plus families wheat carters)

Bottom line was, that one only did essential chores on as Sunday. Not a religious household either. along with that, one never ate meat on a Friday. Not even Marmite or Bonox. One always went to church on Sunday.

I believe that extremist Islamic leaders know this. They are trying to stop the tide.

What they want, is for the west to turn on the Islamic world. This gives them more power, among their own people.

We must only condemn terrorists, not those who follow the Islamic faith.

Like Christianity, there many sects, across many cultures and nations.

Flo: "We must only condemn terrorists, not those who follow the Islamic faith."

So by your reckoning, we should not condemn the many terrorists who follow the Islamic faith.

Flo I remember those times quite well that you mention, to Sunday School and church we must go, in the end I much prefer an Atheistic point of view to the Godly one.
Saudi Arabia, America's ally, but indirectly responsible for the 9/11 attack, the details are being held by Obama and not to be released. Having travelled extensively in the 1980's to countries that I now would not visit in the Middle East, something has gone terribly wrong, most people on this post are blaming Islam, but is this the real reason? hatred is the order of the day now, why?. Poverty is on the increase, and a world recession could be looming, people have no hope in life if just existing, only their religion.
One wonders if the Aborigines when they were shot and killed by the English,and forced to give up the Dreamtime for Christianity, perhaps they felt like we do now that very soon we will have to pray to Allah five times a day, nothing changes from then to now, we hated the Japanese in WW2 and vice versa, lives lost, for what? for them now to build our submarines for war purposes to kill others who we do not like. To kill is cheap, it gets rid of the masses

My big picture on this
- Islam in its current form is a threat to many of my values. It still appears to be quite a way from any broad reformation that will change that.
- The mix between culture and religion is a messy one (as is sometimes the mixing of race into the issue). Some of the issues of culture ar so mixed together with riligion that some follow cultural practices utterly convinced that they are part if their faith.
- I don't think the causes of hatred of the west by many in the muslim world can be neatly attrubuted to any single cause. I do think that badly handled western intervention in the middle east over a sustained period has been a gift to those who want conflict.
- I think there are those who want conflict on both sides, who do whatever it takes to keep or create tension where it need not be.
- I don't personally have a high opinion of the muslim prophet, I am though convinced that those who want to make an issue of similar feelings are an ongoing gift to those tying to provoke conflict. I don't want to make the job of muslim extrimist recruiters any easier than it needs to be.
- I think that many of those who move to western countries set out to be extremists or to raise their children as extremists. Thise who want to continually snipe at muslims help the extremists more than they help integration.
- I do think we need to focus on achievable outcomes, I can't see any posibility ofmall muslims being evicted from western countries so any solutions need to be in a different directiin. A direction that is likely to reduce tensions, not inflame them.
- I think that when all is said and done western secular democracy creates a far better life than any theocratic states. We generally have to work at it to drive most raised here to extremism.

R0bert

Well said Robert, thoughtful post.

Hear, hear, R0bert.