The issue of 'moderate' Muslims and their link to Islamism.

Submitted by Ross Finnegan (United States), Feb 1, 2022 at 15:07

Very welcome. But two points: first, the mollycoddling of Islamism (I draw no distinction between this 'ism' and Islam) by the left and sheer cowardice by the right means that if the fight has to be won, you will have to broaden your struggle to delve into these two disquieting phenomena.

Secondly. to the point of the so-called "moderate' Muslims being the solution, that is simply not true. For example, take the case of halal food--it is there in every street in New York. Halal is a fundamental part of Islam. Do you include that halal food seller in your list of threats as we have seen food imperialism by Muslims? And what about the wearing of hijab by Muslim women who want to wear it? They commit no crime, but their symbolic value is immense--imagine someone giving the Nazi salute and saying it's just another form of salute. It is the 'peaceful' 'moderate' Muslims (say in the press) who go out of their way to minimize and hide the significance of when a terrorist attack takes place or a confrontation between Islam's values and American values. The extent to which ordinary Muslims have shrugged off any relationship between their faith and 9/11 shows the extent of self-delusion and the obstacles you (all of us face).

The threat of Islamism, therefore, springs from the accumulated actions of ordinary, Muslims, carried on relentlessly over the years, until the host society becomes transformed.

But in any event, best of luck getting past the huge wall of ignorance among regular Americans and the deliberate obfuscation of this issue by a thoroughly corrupt mainstream press. I am profoundly pessimistic.

Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome but not comments that are scurrilous, off-topic, commercial, disparaging religions, or otherwise inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the "Guidelines for Reader Comments".