There is no moderate Islam - only a figment of imaginatin and pipe dream!!!

Submitted by Jaladhi (United States), Sep 8, 2010 at 16:08

Dr. Pipes, you write:"But I have one concern: the team's increasing anti-Islamic tone. Misled by the Islamists' insistence that there can be no such thing as "moderate Islam," my allies often fail to distinguish between Islam (a faith) and Islamism (a radical utopian ideology aiming to implement Islamic laws in their totality). This amounts not just to an intellectual error but a policy dead-end. Targeting all Muslims conflicts with basic Western notions, lumps friends with foes, and ignores the inescapable fact that Muslims alone can offer an antidote to Islamism. As I often note, radical Islam is the problem and moderate Islam is the solution."

First of all, I think Islamism is practice of Islam by Muslims and as such all Muslims are Islamists.

Not all Muslims will come out and insist on imposing the aims of Islam on all of us non-Muslims but that is their eventual aim. Just because these Muslims at present are not openly working towards this aim does not make them "moderate". Islam as a faith is not a peaceful and moderate faith by any measure. Period. There can't be two opinions about it as the study of Quran shows how violent its teachings are!!

Why don't you believe what the Islamists, by your definition, say that there is no such thing as"moderate" Islam. Don't you think thsoe who live their life by Islam would know their religion better than those outsiders who wish what Islam should be?? Islam is Islam and it is all violent. Muslims have to come to grips with it it and admit that they follow a violent religion that does not like any other religion on earth. How can they reform this religion when they don't think that there is anything wrong with it. I haven't seen any Muslim who is prepared to denounce the cruel, violent Medina passages and many regular Muslims are prepared on act on them as all those so called radical Muslims do.

In light of this how do you define "moderate" Islam? Is it the one without Medina verses? Is any Muslim "scholar" or imam prepared to abrogate them?? Or you are saying a moderate Muslims is the one who does not act on terror orders of Mo/allah but in that case he won't be considered a Muslim by other Muslims!!

The plain fact is there is no moderate Islam and no moderate Muslim. Islam as faith has been and is the problem for mankind ever since its inception. Our hope for a moderate Islam/Muslim is simply a pipe dream(pun not intended).

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