Radical Islam

Here is a link to a video of an Islamic conference in Norway.  Starting at the 1:50 mark you will find one of the speakers asking the audience if they are radical Muslims.  They almost all deny that they are.  Then he asks them if they agree with separation of the sexes and the notion that the Koran's punishments should be applied worldwide (i.e., even to non-Muslims).  They almost all said yes.

Sam Harris and Richard Dawkins have both already posted this video on their websites, so you may have seen it or heard of it already, but I think it is worth posting a link here just in case someone comes here who hasn't seen it.  In addition, my link is to the original posting of the video on YouTube, which is more illuminating than the video alone.

The "about" comment left by those who posted the video is an incredible example of irony and narcissistic blindness.  Apparently, they think that the video proves that Islamophobia exists and is unjustified.  Twice they state as a given that Islam is not to blame.  Therefore, it can only be western media who is to blame for labeling Islam as extreme and Muslims as radical.

Here is the first instance:

"If the common Muslims believe in these values that means that more or less all Muslims are radical and that Islam is a radical religion. Since this is not the case, as Islam is a peaceful religion and so are the masses of common Muslims, these Shaykhs cannot be radical. Rather it is Islamophobia from the ignorant western media who is more concerned about making money by alienating Islam by presenting Muslims in this way."

Notice how the crucial portion of this reasoning is presented as a given, something that is not supported by any evidence but which is simply accepted as true.

Of course, the film tends to prove exactly the opposite--that Islam itself is radical and intolerant.