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Research explores what 1.3 billion Muslims think
Reuters ^ | April 7, 2008 | Luke Baker

Posted on 04/07/2008 9:00:31 AM PDT by Aristotelian

LONDON (Reuters) - In the years since the September 11 attacks on the United States, much has been said about the Muslim world, but little, it is argued, has been gathered on what Muslims truly think of the West.

Now Gallup, the global polling group, has conducted research in 35 Muslim countries, interviewing more than 50,000 people over a six-year period, to come up with what it is calling the first comprehensive survey of Muslim world opinion.

The results, published in a book called "Who Speaks for Islam? What a billion Muslims really think", provide often surprising clues as to how Muslims perceive the West and how misunderstanding on both sides -- often perpetuated by politicians and the media -- can fuel suspicion and conflict.

"The conflict between Muslims and Western communities is far from inevitable," co-author Dalia Mogahed said on Monday, laying out one of the fundamental conclusions she and John Esposito, a professor at Georgetown University, drew from the reams of data.

"It is more about policy than principles...

(snip)

The U.S. invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq, where it is closely backed by Britain, have done much to color the perception of the two in the Muslim world, where they are widely regarded "unfavorably" and described as "aggressive".

Yet both Britain and the United States are at the same time held up by many Muslims as the best representatives of what is most admired about the West -- the freedom of its citizens.

(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: 911aftermath; alreuters; islamicimperialism; lietothekufir
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1 posted on 04/07/2008 9:00:31 AM PDT by Aristotelian
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To: Aristotelian

Whitewash.


2 posted on 04/07/2008 9:02:24 AM PDT by webheart
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To: Aristotelian

what “Muslims think” is an oxymoron.


3 posted on 04/07/2008 9:03:13 AM PDT by A_Former_Democrat
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To: Aristotelian
Research explores what 1.3 billion Muslims think


4 posted on 04/07/2008 9:05:10 AM PDT by KentTrappedInLiberalSeattle (McCain "conservatives" = hardcore liberals who nonetheless appreciate the occasional tax cut.)
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To: Aristotelian

not f#$@ing much.


5 posted on 04/07/2008 9:05:58 AM PDT by Dick Vomer (liberals suck....... but it depends on what your definition of the word "suck" is.,)
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To: Aristotelian

Lemme guess — hmmm — Israel sucks, Israel should disappear, Israel is the biggest insult, Israel is their main concern, Israel must go, Israel is at the center of all their problems. Oh yeah, and America supports Israel, and therefore must also die.

Other than that, not much.


6 posted on 04/07/2008 9:10:54 AM PDT by Migraine (Diversity is great...(until it happens to YOU).)
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To: Aristotelian

I remember seeing something about America’s popularity before 9/11 being something like 66% and after 9/11 but before the Iraq invasion being 76%.


7 posted on 04/07/2008 9:11:41 AM PDT by Rob112586 ("...a decrease in the quantity of legislation generally means an increase in the quality of life.")
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To: KentTrappedInLiberalSeattle
Muslims around the world said they in fact admired much of what the West holds dear", including freedom of speech,

False. They do not admire our freedom of speech. They appeal to the United Nations to outlaw blasphemy against Islam.

They admire how we permit the muslim supremacist ideology of Islam to be funded in the West by the Islam-only state of Saudi Arabia. The reciprocal would not be tolerated at home.

8 posted on 04/07/2008 9:12:22 AM PDT by weegee (March 18th, 2008 Obama~"I did NOT listen to the sermons of that man, Jeremiah Wright...")
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To: Aristotelian
"Muslims do not see the West as monolithic -- their perception of different nations falls along policy, not cultural or religious lines," she said.

Meanwhile muslim nations all use the same colored flags and all bow to the Islamic capital 5 times a day every day. So the Islamic empire IS monolithic.

9 posted on 04/07/2008 9:14:53 AM PDT by weegee (March 18th, 2008 Obama~"I did NOT listen to the sermons of that man, Jeremiah Wright...")
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Comment #10 Removed by Moderator

To: weegee
While admiring Western values, many Muslims feel they are not respected by the West and that the values the West espouses, such as democracy, are only given lip service when it comes to applying them in the Muslim world.

A recent example was the 2006 election in the Palestinian territories, which the Islamist movement Hamas won in a free and fair poll. The United States and Israel have since done much to ignore the result and try to push Hamas out of office.

Hamas is a terrorist organization and to seat them in elected office makes them a terrorist state. If muslims "denounce" terrorists they wouldn't seat them in majority power.

11 posted on 04/07/2008 9:18:10 AM PDT by weegee (March 18th, 2008 Obama~"I did NOT listen to the sermons of that man, Jeremiah Wright...")
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To: Aristotelian

I want to know why they didn’t ask Muslims what Muslims could do to improve their popularity with the West. Then again, I already know the answer to that question.


12 posted on 04/07/2008 9:18:34 AM PDT by Honcho
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To: Aristotelian

“Kill the infidel!” is what a majority think.


13 posted on 04/07/2008 9:18:48 AM PDT by TexasRepublic (When hopelessness replaces hope, it opens the door to evil.)
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To: webheart
"When we asked Muslims around the world what the West can do to improve relations with the Muslim world, the most frequent responses were for the West to demonstrate more respect for Islam and to regard Muslims as equals, not as inferior."

Muslims are equals in America. The converse is not true in muslim nations where the law distinguished between muslim and kufir. Non-muslims have fewer rights and protections under the law in muslim nations. Even natives who convert away from Islam are discriminated against at home so it is purely religious bigotry on the part of muslims.

If they want respect around the world, they must first show tolerance for others at home.

14 posted on 04/07/2008 9:20:46 AM PDT by weegee (March 18th, 2008 Obama~"I did NOT listen to the sermons of that man, Jeremiah Wright...")
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To: Aristotelian
"When we asked Muslims around the world what the West can do to improve relations with the Muslim world, the most frequent responses were for the West to demonstrate more respect for Islam and to regard Muslims as equals, not as inferior."

Sorry. Ain't gonna happen. Muslims are inferior. When they clean up their own frickin' messes then maybe I'll reconsider.

15 posted on 04/07/2008 9:21:24 AM PDT by LiberConservative (Part of the "Vast Typical White Guy Conspiracy")
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To: Aristotelian
A factor overlaying each side's view of the other has been media coverage. Mogahed said media-content analysis showed the majority of U.S. TV news coverage was "sharply negative" of Islam, whereas when Christianity was discussed on Muslim TV stations, the coverage was flat -- neither good nor bad.

And how was Judaism treated on muslim tv? There are Jews in the US too, and atheists, and Scientologists, and wiccan, and pagans, and Buddhists, and Hindus, et al.

16 posted on 04/07/2008 9:22:46 AM PDT by weegee (March 18th, 2008 Obama~"I did NOT listen to the sermons of that man, Jeremiah Wright...")
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To: webheart
"co-author Dalia Mogahed said on Monday, laying out one of the fundamental conclusions she and John Esposito, a professor at Georgetown University, drew from the reams of data.

One of which is known as one of the biggest Islamic appologists (read liar) around.

Whitewash? Absolutely.

If anyone wants to know what Muslims "think", they should go to memri.com and read some of the Friday sermons the sheiks are preaching. THAT is what they are instructed to think. Like the borg on star trek, Muslims aren't allowed independent thought, and the reasoning centers of their brains were destroy long ago at the onset of their Islamic programming.

17 posted on 04/07/2008 9:23:41 AM PDT by Nathan Zachary
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To: Aristotelian
Mogahed said media-content analysis showed the majority of U.S. TV news coverage was "sharply negative" of Islam, whereas when Christianity was discussed on Muslim TV stations, the coverage was flat -- neither good nor bad.
Yeah. Unbiased survey.

(Did anyone do a similar survey of Nazis in 1944?)

ML/NJ

18 posted on 04/07/2008 9:25:41 AM PDT by ml/nj
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To: Aristotelian
If the Muslims would clean their own religion out and reform it, the rest of the world wouldn't have to become their baby sitters and police.
Outside of poverty, death and backwardness, what exactly has Islam brought to this world?
If not for oil in the Middle East, they would be little more that international welfare recipients.
19 posted on 04/07/2008 9:30:05 AM PDT by A CA Guy ( God Bless America, God bless and keep safe our fighting men and women.)
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To: Aristotelian

Ok, this is an easy one.

Muslim = good
Non-Muslim = bad

When do I get my check?


20 posted on 04/07/2008 9:33:08 AM PDT by SledgeCS (Build the fence. Deport the Illegals. Sell all their assets to cover the cost.)
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