It has not been a very good day for Muslims.
In Somalia, the BBC reported, a 33-year-old man was stoned to death for adultery. Witnesses reported seeing blood spouting from his head during approximately seven continuous minutes of stoning, before the man finally died. While this may not raise too many eyebrows, try this one on: the girl – presumably younger – who is pregnant with the man’s child, has been sentenced to death as well, as soon as she gives birth. Still not strong enough for you? Last year they stoned to death another girl for the same thing. She was 13.
On the other side of the world, a U.S. Army Major reportedly started shooting at a military base, killing 13 and injuring 28 others in a spree apparently prompted by his upcoming orders to go to Afghanistan. See it coming? That’s right, the Major was Muslim. Not only that, but he was a devout, practicing Muslim, born in America to Palestinian parents. He was reportedly wearing full religious clothing at the time of the shooting, and was heard screaming the Arabic phrase "Allahu Akbar!" [God is great] before he started shooting.
Not a good day for Muslims at all.
Islam is not, of course, the only religion to suffer from prejudice caused by a few bad apples… or even the only group. Intermountain west Mormons are all branded as closet polygamists thanks to the FLDS matter last year. Catholic leaders are all suspected of being closet molesters, thanks to the failures of a few. Even your regular law enforcement officer is disliked by most, even though most people don’t even know any officers personally.
However, you won’t find a police department that has a published goal of killing everyone who isn’t an officer like them.
The incidents in Somalia prove that religious fervor trumps law and morality with almost no contest. The incident at Fort Hood shows that religious belief trumps loyalty to country, patriotism, and military order – again with almost no contest. And while there are many religious groups that could be called "fervent", none of them link that fervor with global killings as easily as radical Muslims apparently do.
Of course, the Major’s family is claiming that he was "being harassed" because of his religion. But it’s quickly becoming clear that the shooting wasn’t about harassment. The Major didn’t kill the people who were harassing him. He opened fire in a public area of Fort Hood – just down the hall from a graduation ceremony for new soldiers! Make no mistake – this was no victim of harassment. This was a man who wanted to punish others for daring to try to send him to Afghanistan. And he accomplished this punishment using indirect yet highly effective means: killing innocents. Which is, if I’m not mistaken, a rather common thread in the world of radical Islam.
One soldier at Fort Hood pointed out that this was going to make everyone look at Muslims – and especially Muslim soldiers – in a more negative light. Indeed it will, and should. Because nobody ever thought that the Muslim Major could kill at least 13 people in cold blood… until after he actually did it. This is not a case of prejudice. Judgement wasn’t passed until after the act occurred. As long as people choose to associate with a group noted for their willingness and eagerness to enforce their religious views with violence, those people will be subject to deeper scrutiny. Because it is from that group of people that the threats clearly and consistently seem to emerge.
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