The Voice of Russia published this piece today on U.S. perceptions of Muslims. The article cites a recent study conducted by the Brooking Institution and The Public Religion Research Institute, which states that 30% of Americans believe that Muslims in the United States would like to establish Sharia law. The article clumsily states that:
According to the latest polls a significant part of the American society is uncomfortable with Muslims. Ten years after the tragedy of 9/11 Americans are still not eager to accept the integration of Islam into their culture. At the same time the results of the survey disprove the stereotype describing the American citizens as close minded and totally intolerant. While many Americans still believe that the values of Islam conflict with traditional American values, most of the respondents are ready to respect the religious views of other people as long as they don’t contradict with their lifestyle.
Later on the article cites Dr. Muqtedar Khan, a professor of political science at the University of Delaware: “I looked at this survey, and I’m really depressed.” he is quoted as saying, referring to the growing number of Americans that perceive Islam to be at odds with Western values. With the 10th anniversary of 9/11 approaching, European and American political commentators are trying to “enlighten” this religion in a western manner in order to teach the west the “true” Islam. They advocate education and the uncovering of superstitions. This is commendable. Yet what is “true” Islam? I would argue that the kind of “true” Islam that you hear people in the West promoting today to distance their conservative version of the religion from the radical version of Islam promoted by Bin Laden et al., is a mirror image of what Judaism and Christianity are in the West, empty relative shells of the more absolute beliefs of the radicals. In the long run I firmly believe that Western society will “doom” Islam to the fate of the “judeo-christian” tradition, it will become another feckless secular biblical faith of the west. Radical Islam will fall flat on its face, but one ought to be amazed at how these absolute “narrow” beliefs (and Western technology) are enabling small radical forces to hold the West hostage.
