Thanks. Although I must admit to argue with some of the people on this thread because they have quite some knowledge about terrorist funding, radicalism of the Islam, etc.
What I'm just trying to give is the perspective from the Netherlands and I think I'm quite average. I have flatmates that are even more soft on Islam as I am, on the other hand more and more people are getting upset about Muslims in general.
Just heard on the news that the MP's are urging the Queen to make a statement to stop the escalation...
The best thing to do is allow the escalation to go on while you are still the majority and thus have a fighting chance.
It is difficult for some to understand that they are playing right into the hands of the terrorists.
The terrorists (Muslim extremists) WANT a religious war. The way for them to achieve their goal is to incite rage against ALL Muslims, and their acts of terror are apparently working from what I've read here on FR.
Our President, George W. Bush, understands this and knows that this is a "War on Terror", not a war against Muslims in general. Some here on these FR threads would have us believe that because there are evil Muslims waging war against anyone who does not believe in their radicalized version of Islam, then it's only a matter of time before ALL Muslims will attack us. To these folks, they see fear in every Muslim, and they believe that the Muslim family down the street is a Trojan Horse just waiting to attack.
When I've argued this with some, the first thing they will accuse you of is not having any knowledge of the Quran, etc., and once the insults start flying they become a pack of rabid dogs. As you can imagine, that does not lead to a thoughtful discussion. Yes, we need more Moderate Muslims to speak out, to speak out loudly and often. These Moderate Muslims are also victims of Muslim extremists/terrorists.
The War on Terror needs to be fought throughout the world, there is no doubt at all about that. I urge people to remember who the real terrorists are, and what the terrorists are trying to accomplish. If through their evil acts they turn you against ALL Muslims, then they will have won. And the moderate Muslims will become victims of both sides of the issue. The War on Terror will morph into a Religious War...and THAT will be the end of this world as we know it.
President Bush understands this, and I'm just betting he'd now say, "and I approved this message". LOL