You replied as predicted, but it's not an answer

Submitted by Noah Wilk (United States), May 4, 2007 at 18:03

Dr. Pipes - I predicted that would be your reply, but that does not in any way answer my challenge. I was looking for an actual answer, and what you provided was nothing more than a cursory non-answer.

First, how many of them were truly Muslim? The population of Turkey is listed at 71,158,647 (according to the CIA Factbook). It lists 0.2% of the population as Christian or Jewish. There's 142,317 potential protesters, with not a single one being Muslim. It is irresponsible to merely assume that the protesters were all Muslim.

And what about Karachi? There are an estimated 120,000 Roman Catholics, 180,000 Christians, and 100,000 Hindus living in Karachi alone. That gives us 400,000 people in Karachi who belong to a one religion or another that strongly opposes Islam. And yet you are assuming that the 100,000 protesters were all Muslim. That's not just erroneous - it's a foolish assumption at best, a dishonest claim at worst.

Second, while there were some Muslims protesting, that does not mean that they are reform minded or moderate. It simply means they do not want to live under Sharia law. That does not make them "moderates". There are plenty of terrorists who do not live under Sharia law (and who choose not to live in an area dominated by Sharia law) who nonetheless are hell-bent on blowing up all non-Muslims. There are plenty of Muslims who choose to live in America and who do not want Sharia law but who nonetheless hate Jews, hate Christians, and hate America.

Equating the desire not to have Sharia law with the idea of being a peaceful, tolerant, moderate is a fatal error and a lapse of not only logic, but also common sense.

Third, your answer evades the majority of my question. I specifically asked you why so few Muslims living in America ever bother to attend protests or reform rallies. They turn out in large numbers to protest 24 (the cable tv show) or to protest when we throw some suspicious immams (with known terror links) off an airplane. They turn out in droves when one of theirs is elected to Congress (chanting "Allahu akbar", the war cry of the Muslims). But when it comes to reform-minded functions, rallies to denounce terror, etc, they are virtually non-existent. The protests in Karachi have nothing to do with this. ...

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