Is there really such an entity as "Moderate Islam"?

Submitted by Bonny Donnelly (Canada), Aug 12, 2002 at 11:37

I've yet to meet (either personally or through the media) a truly moderate Muslim. Among other things, a truly moderate Muslim would believe that the terror attacks were wrong - no ifs, ands, or buts; bottom line. I've yet to see that.

We all remember where we were on Sept 11 when we heard. I'm a Canadian who had a slim-to-none chance that anyone I knew was a part of it; I cried in horror and disbelief. Before that day I knew nothing about Bin Laden, Islam, the Taliban, or Afghanistan.

My personal experience with Muslims is probably more than the average guy. I work as a bartender at a busy bar in the centre of a booming oil town. There's a large Muslim community in this city of 40,000+. Most of the cab drivers are young single Muslim men, and because people talk, I've heard and seen lots. In late September, I escorted a cabbie out of the bar because the other customers were angry and threatening to become violent at the cabbie's anti-American tirade. A group of Lebanese cooks at one of the oil plants had to be escorted off site because they cheered when the second plane hit. I could go on and on, but my point is this: TRULY moderate Muslims should please stand up!! Right now you're being represented by the fence-sitters and radicals.

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