Quote from AAAintheBeltway:
I didn't mean to imply that we are in a war against all of Islam but only that a segment of Islam is already at war against us. To say, as you do, that our opponents just happen to be Muslim is to ignore reality.
AAA, I agree with you entirely that a segment of Islam is already at war against us - the extremists/fundamentalists. But the "reality" is that they represent a small percentage of all Muslims. Even if you subscribe to the view, as spec8tor does, that most Muslims feel the US is anti-Muslim, the "reality" is that those willing to fight and kill us are still a small minority.
This situation is radically different. Our opponents have justified their actions on religious grounds, and have even claimed that their religion mandates it as jihad. And it's not like we haven't had experience with Islam. It has a long and bloody history of advance through conquest and war, and persecution of nonbelievers.
Hmmm, sounds a lot like the history of Christianity. At least Islam's history of conquest allowed mercy for those who convert to Islam, whereas crusading Christians slaughtered men, women, and children without extending that offer.
You astutely point out many of the complexities such a conflict poses. I agree, and said in my original post that it poses a conflict between security and civil liberties. And indeed it is unfair in a sense to those Muslims who are peaceful.
MOST of the Muslims are peaceful! They may disagree with us but last time I checked the majority of the hundreds of millions of Muslims weren't going around trying to kill us. If that truly were the case not only would we have no embassies or consulates in the Middle East, Malaysia, or Indonesia, but at this very moment we'd be fighting a popular revolt against million of Iraqis.
Of course, no one is stopping them from changing religions.
Come on, you can't be serious! Should all Catholics renounce their faith because of the IRA? Would you expect American Christians to renounce their beliefs if some wacko extremist Protestants from Dubuque started murdering American Muslims in Brooklyn? Of course you wouldn't.
The fact that Muslims would find such a thing unthinkable points up an unpleasant truth: they regard themselves as Muslims first, Americans second, or maybe third or fourth.
I think millions of Americans would say they, too, are Christians first and Americans second.
I think the country has bent over backwards to prevent any harrassment or discrimination against Muslims, and President Bush has gone way out on a limb on this. Probably 9/11 could have been prevented if we hadn't been so obsessed with political correctness. I mean, how smart do you have to be to know that young arab males deserve extra scrutiny when they are committing terrorism against western interests all over the globe?
FOREIGN arab males definitely deserve extra scrutiny. Steps must be taken in the visa application procedure to screen for such people. BUT, what do you propose doing with the millions of American Muslims? I ask you again - do you advocate the forced detention, seizure of property, and harassment of American Muslims a la the Japanese-American experience during WWII? If not, what then do you propose?
I think the Muslim leadership deserves a lot of blame as well. Instead of expressing regret and offering to do whatever they could for their country, they carped and moaned about security measures and tried to blame it all on Israel. In fact, they continue this pattern. How many Muslim leaders have condemned the beheading? I haven't heard a single one.
Hmm, I recall post 9/11 numerous fervent quotes from American Muslims stating their revulsion of the WTC/Pentagon attacks. It seems that you are of the opinion that American Muslims need apologize every time a fanatic non-American Muslim does something barbaric overseas. I think that's very naive.