"It is a chosen lifestyle and is detrimental to them and to their non-islamic neighbors as it breeds mistrust and lack of cultural understanding."
It only breeds mistrust among the uneducated - the Amish don't seem to have any problems, there are chinatowns in most major cities, and New York probably most of all has major ethnic neighborhoods.
It's a natural tendancy in cities for people of the same background to cluster, I'll bet Jersey City has a "Copt community". ( in an attempt to bring things on-topic)
If your attempt at "cultural understanding" leads you to the conclusion that they are tools of satan bent on your destruction it's hard to find common ground.
... and the muslims knowledge that there are many out there that have jumped to that conclusion leads to further clustering.
Oh poof. When did you ever hear me call anyone a "tool of satan?" At least get your fellow FReepers straight. Insult me with my words, not someone else's, thank you.
"It only breeds mistrust among the uneducated - the Amish don't seem to have any problems, there are chinatowns in most major cities, and New York probably most of all has major ethnic neighborhoods"
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I am sure there are plenty of uneducated people who have no problem trusting the islamic communities; as there are educated people who do harbor distrust of these communities. But enough of that; I am aware that this statement of yours was an attempt to insinuate I am uneducated; and I am not biting, sorry.
Of course there are other ethnic groups who have a tendency to cluster--its just that generally they don't have a history of harboring terrorists in their mists or dancing and cheering when one or 19 of their ethnic group commits mass murder of Americans. That kind of behavior serves to engender mistrust.
"... and the muslims knowledge that there are many out there that have jumped to that conclusion leads to further clustering. "
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Oh, so that's why islamic communities are insular and don't assimilate. It doesn't have anything to do with the belief that mixing with infidels is anti-islam, or anything like that. It's because they heard some FReepers say they are "tools of satan".
Right.