Does Terrorism Galvanize the West against Islam?

Submitted by J.S. (Canada), Aug 23, 2005 at 17:01

I frequently listen to CBC radio, and I have been amazed by the lack of galvanization against radical Islam in the face of terrorist attacks (whether it's 9/11 or 7/7). In fact, on a number of programs (this was before the CBC had its labour dispute) listeners wrote in to the CBC on the topic of the terrorist attacks in London. Many letters were not angry with Muslims. They were sympathetic.

Many Canadians also expressed outrage because a Canadian general named Hillier (prior to going to Afghanistan) called terrorists "scumbags" and said they had to be killed -- the overwhelming response was outrage to Hillier's comments. One person claimed that Hillier was sounding "just like Bush and Blair." It doesn't seem to matter what Muslims do -- Islam gains endorsement by ordinary Canadians.

On another radio program one letter writer claimed that the 7/7 attacks were obviously not carried out by Muslims -- it was all just an anti-Muslim conspiracy headed up by Bush and Blair -- the "terrorists" were just "ordinary Londoners" who were being picked on by the British establishment..Now when I heard this, I thought -- "Ok, this letter has to have been written by an Islamist." I have to laugh, they read the name of the person writing the letter -- the writer was female with an anglo-saxon sounding name.

I really don't get it...Other programs at the CBC (from listening to the "journalists") seem to think that the most evil of persons on the planet is George W. Bush (not Osama -- yeah, he's a "freedom fighter.") Over and over again I heard CBC "journalists" referrring to George Bush's "so-called war on terrorism" -- I don't understand why the journalists prefix the "war on terror" with "so-called." It's as if these journalists are convinced that the war is not about fighting terrorists but "it's about the oil" -- the CBC "journalists" remind me of M. Moore and his crazed conspiracy theories...I think the media plays a tremendous role in making sure that NO Canadian is ever "galvanized" against Muslims or Islam (no matter how heinous, no matter how horrific, no matter how criminally they behave) because the biggest "terrorist" is Bush..

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