For Muslim Who Says Violence Destroys Islam, Violent Threats

[barb162]

For Muslim Who Says Violence Destroys Islam, Violent Threats

By JOHN M. BRODER
Published: March 11, 2006
LOS ANGELES, March 10 — Three weeks ago, Dr. Wafa Sultan was a largely unknown Syrian-American psychiatrist living outside Los Angeles, nursing a deep anger and despair about her fellow Muslims.

Today, thanks to an unusually blunt and provocative interview on Al Jazeera television on Feb. 21, she is an international sensation, hailed as a fresh voice of reason by some, and by others as a heretic and infidel who deserves to die.

In the interview, which has been viewed on the Internet more than a million times and has reached the e-mail of hundreds of thousands around the world, Dr. Sultan bitterly criticized the Muslim clerics, holy warriors and political leaders who she believes have distorted the teachings of Muhammad and the Koran for 14 centuries.

snip

In response, clerics throughout the Muslim world have condemned her, and her telephone answering machine has filled with dark threats. But Islamic reformers have praised her for saying out loud, in Arabic and on the most widely seen television network in the Arab world, what few Muslims dare to say even in private

snip

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/11/international/middleeast/11sultan.html

(One word: cajones)

[megatherium]

1. Bless her for her courage. nt

[barb162]

2. yes, she is putting her life on the line

[demosincebirth]

3. It is so true what she says.

She's got huevos!

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

4. What she is saying is true

for every fundamentalist religion-they have lost the teachings and are concentrating on their own narrow interpretations, which they use to foster their already existing hatreds and fears. And the sad thing is, these fundamentalists are driving people away from their religion because of this-and the basic teachings of Islam and Christianity are basically to follow the Golden Rule. Too bad the fundamentalists can't follow it.

[barb162]

7. agree, and when they get violent about it

forget it!

I met a hospice worker 2 days ago taking care of a person I know and she told me she turned evangelical a few years ago but she wasn't one of these nutcase violent idiots. She was this amazingly calm person who just liked reading books about Jesus.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

5. Also please read this post from the Muslim/Islam group

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=359x270

It gives insight into a moderate Muslim's interpretation of how to handle insults, etc, and is well worth reading.

[barb162]

8. thank you

:hi:

[madmark]

6. the irony