Ban Islam

Submitted by Chris (United States), Aug 29, 2007 at 14:02

While I usually agree with Daniel Pipes, to dismiss movements to ban Islam or the Koran because they are too broad or because that they ignore the possibility of positive change doesn't really address the problem. While honorable and respected Muslims have managed to ignore the evil parts of the Koran, those evil parts are still there for Islamists to exploit and use as justification for terror. While the Communist Manifesto and Mein Kampf are still available for academic and historical use, few countries today would condone or allow widespread dissemination of those views. (Granted, Mein Kampf is popular in some Islamist countries today, for good reasons.)

As far as waiting for "the possibility of positive change," we've been waiting for 1,400 years! The latest attempt at a reformist version of the Koran (see www.islamicreform.org) is a whitewash that obfuscates clear, Arabic words into far-fetched derivatives. For example, instead of saying, "Believers, make war on the infidels who dwell around you" in Surah 9:123, it dissembles, "O you who acknowledge, fight the ingrates who gird you about." Instead of "sriking the necks" of unbelievers in Surah 47:4, the reformists just want warriors to "strike the control center" of "those who have rejected." The clear words of the Koran don't lend themselves to positive interpretations because that wasn't their intent.

I agree that reducing the threats of jihad and Shariah are primary objectives, but this will have to come primarily from Muslims themselves. So far there is little progress in these areas by Muslims.

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