to be sick and tired of this racism?

[LifeForRent]

I am absolutely SICK AND TIRED of reading about Muslims this, Islam that.

I am SICK of reading from ignorant morons on Facebook "Send Muslims home".

AIBU to think that this is ridiculous, where would we send "Muslims" home too? Islam isn't a race/nationality it's a religion...

What on earth is with the hatred? Afghanistan haven't threatened Britain-and most people think that the Army is there to "protect" Britain...

AIBU to think that this is just a small percentage of ill educated, red top reading, morons?

Riven
Yes its a shame we cannot get on
People are there own worse enemy

Erm, did God make people????

My own mother is one of these Muslim-despising morons

She's got a good heart but she's a bit of a, well, dimwit. "They're giving the Muslims fifty billion pounds to build a mosque made out of diamonds." "Who told you that,mum?" "It was in the paper."

I try and explain to her that the red-tops are there to provoke a reaction out of foaming mouthbreathers who will believe any old bollocks they read without questioning it. To which she responds "but it said it IN THE PAPERS" Bless her. She thinks that if something gets published in a newspaper then it is unshakeable eveidence. How do you argue with that level of dimmery? I just tut and roll my eyes now. DH and I sometimes make a game of it, who can get the biggest reaction out of her by fabricating wild storied about "dem stinky muslims". My best was the one about muslims knocking down a church, using the bricks to build a mosque and flogging the valuables and sending teh cash back to where they came from to fund Muslim terrorists. Heh heh, she nearly combusted.

There are as many versions of Islam as there are Muslims, just as in Christianity, there are as many takes on it as followers. The only belief that is true of all Muslims is expressed in the Shahada, "There is no God but God and Muhammad is God's Prophet." , everything else is a matter of interpretation. Bear in mind also that many practices are cultural in origin, not religious. If you want to know more, buy a beginner's guide and an English Quran (please treat this as carefully as you would a Bible)and get busy. I guarantee you will find it fascinating and that you will learn a lot, although you still may not have the answer to your question about what Muslims believe.
And before you ask, nope, C of E actually!

Bup-she sounds just like my friend's mum. Must try that-sounds hysterical!

It's my coping strategy, DrSeuss. I can't persuade her that she is WRONG, so I get some fun out of it by winding her up a good 'un

Riven - know you were born here and i think came from a whit christian background so your experiences are different from many other muslims who were born into that culture and religion. Would you ever want to live in a Muslim ruled country or do you prefer a secular society? Would you prefer to see countries like Saudi go secular in the future? Sorry, but you are always quite open and articulate in your posts and I'm really interested in what muslims want to see happen in their religion. I know you can't lump muslims as a group and you only speak for yourself.

I must admit my first introduction to muslims was in the early 90's through travelling in Turkey, Israel, West Bank, Sinai where the overall impression I got was pretty tolerant and liberal. Lived in Singapore where again the fairly large muslim population is tolerant, open and take it or leave it.
The more extreme and hardline muslim views which seem to have surfaced more since 9/11 has challenged that initial impression I got which was very different from how muslims in Saudi etc practise and are expected to behave. It is all very confusing.

Fair enough, Riven. I have the Penguin one- what do you think? Should have added that, as a professional linguist, IMO a translation of anything is always a bit iffy as it is subjective.

As previous posters have said, it comes from fear.

Unfortunately, most (all?) terrorist activity reported recently has been done in the name of Islam.

I do not believe this represents all Muslims, but if this is the only format (negative) in which the religion is reported, then many people will be frightened and angry.

I do worry that any discussion of the subject more often than not descends into shouts of 'racism' which I believe comes from both sides of the argument.

I am an atheist.

Ta, Riven. Paganism sounds fun. do I get to dance naked at full moon? That would scare the neighbours!

I meant here, in the UK Riven, sorry I should have been clearer.

My brother had a pagan wedding. It was very 'interesting'

English pagan to practicing muslim - must have been quite a journey! Thanks for taking the time to answer.

The Oklahoma City bombing on April 19, 1995 by Timothy McVeigh, an American militia movement sympathizer who detonated an explosive-filled truck parked in front of the building.
America has so many religious movements and groups and clans, etc..i still think it is the tendencey to accuse the other. A sort of projection of human faults onto someone who looks different than us and speaks different than us..that is why when a non Mulsim meets a Muslim who does not fit the commonly ( not so appealing to say the least)held profile of muslims, they call them "nice" things and will even say "gee you are so different" meaning: you are so much like us

I guess I wonder how strictly practicing muslims would like to see the UK and the world at large develope. If you are passionate about your religion and feel it is enlightening and the true way to salvation and that the world would be a better place if everyone practiced it then would practicing muslims like to see the UK become a more muslim based country with more people converting - not be force of course as this would go against what little I have gleemed from the Kora? Makes sense to me - it's what Christians tried to do to the rest of the world when they had more faith and passion in their religion.

not by force of course as this would go against what little I have gleemed from the Koran?

Really need to proofread my posts!

"Would anyone define the EDL as 'terrorist'?"

I think they'd like to be and the intention is there but they're too pussy to do anything other than shout and break a few windows.

That's not right twirlymum. The figures I've seen (Interpol report or some such) indicate in the last 2-3 years there have been more problems from dissident Irish Republicans and the like than Islamists.

I'm going to sound incredibly sexist here but a lot of the extreme Islamist idiots who make me despair with their poppy-burning and hideous inflammatory statements are twatty self-important young men in their teens and early twenties (same age group as the EDL's main support in fact, who behave similarly).

Maybe this is as much a gender and age (and economic) issue as a religious one, with a strata of entitled, disaffected and hysterical young men utterly convinced of their own importance and righteousness trying to make their mark on the world by any means necessary?

They have no responsiblities yet, most of them, feel invulnerable, lack empathy, are full of hormones and rage and impatience.

Their activities don't make me hate Muslims, or white working-class men. They just make me want to wade in, box a few ears, confiscate a few placards, put them in detention and generally make them feel ashamed of themselves.

I'm sounding very middle-aged, aren't I?