[Dean's World] Dean: More On "Muslims Against Sharia"

[notify at powerblogs.com]

Posted by Dean:
More On "Muslims Against Sharia"
http://www.deanesmay.com/posts/1192057994.shtml


   Without going into a great deal of detail, I know enough of about
   Islam--the real religion, not the cartoon religion that Robert Spencer
   makes his very comfortable income selling to people--to know that
   anything called "Muslims Against Sharia" is the rough equivalent of
   calling yourself "Jews Against Talmud" or "Christians Against The
   Cannibalism Known As The Lord's Supper." It's a non-starter. Sharia is
   not one monolithic thing, it's a summary of legal judgments with many
   schools of thought, just like biblical or talmudic interpretation.
   There are things done in the name of "Sharia" that many Muslims
   reject, but telling them they have to reject "Sharia" entirely, or
   reject the Koran entirely, is just plain idiocy in my view.

   And no, by the way, try as you might you conservatives, you cannot pin
   the "moral relativism" label on me. Go ahead and try, you f***ers. I
   believe in good and evil, I believe some cultures and ideas are
   superior to others, and yes, I reject Islam as a religion. So what?
   That doesn't render me stupid enough to accept stupid assertions about
   that other religion. I may think Joseph Smith was no prophet (and by
   the way, I don't think he was) but that doesn't mean I make up
   vicious, semi-plausible lies about Mormons.

   Ditto Muslims.

   Anyway, I say all that merely to introduce the following email I just
   received:

     Dean,

     Because you've talked about Muslims Against Sharia on your blog, we
     thought you'd be interested in the interview we're airing tonight.

     ---

     On tonightâs "A Field Guide To American Politics" podcast, we will
     have an interview with Khalim Massoud of the Muslims Against Sharia
     weblog. It is an interesting look behind the scene at one of the
     more controversial blogs in 2007.

     Thatâs at 10pm EST tonight at Talkshoe. Feel free to call in. All
     the info is on our podcast page at
     [1]http://www.allamericanblogger.com/podcast/

     ---

     Our hope is that you might help us promote this interview with a
     mention on your blog.

     Regards,

     Andrew & Duane All American Bloggers

   One free piece of advice to the All American Bloggers: As a supporter
   of the War Against Terrorism, a voter who supported President Bush in
   both 2000 and 2004, as a man whose stepfather and with many friends
   who've served in Iraq and Afghanistan, as someone who thinks it's all
   a noble cause worth fighting for, I am truly, and deeply, disgusted by
   the Islamophobia of so many on the right. It has nothing to do with
   "moral equivalency," and everything to do with not lying about a
   people or a religion, even a people I am not a member of (which I
   never will be) or a religion I am not a member of (which I never will
   be). It's about honesty. And respect. And basic decency.

   As a Roman Catholic, I respect most everything Pope Benedict has said
   on this matter. I also accept some o the criticisms that have been
   leveled at him, but, I also say there's nothing he's ever said on the
   matter that I actually disagree with--and he's said much that should
   give the Islamophobes pause (and yes, by the way, there is such a
   thing as Islamophobia).

   Also, by the way, I never posted anything for or against "Muslims
   Against Sharia." My brother Aziz Poonawalla, a [2]Dawoodi Bohra (and
   one of the finest Americans I've ever known, even if he is a lefty
   dork sometimes) posted that. I had no opinion. I still have no
   opinion, because frankly I haven't read the site, but knowing Aziz to
   be the intellectually honest guy that he is, and knowing what I do
   about the *real* Sharia (as opposed to the Cartoon Sharia that gets
   sold to eager Muslim-haters), I am basically sympathetic to his view.

   So anyway I won't be calling in, but any Dean's World subscribers who
   want to call in and/or listen are welcome to. Either way, I'll link
   the transcript if it's available later. I otherwise have only one
   piece of advice to the "All American Bloggers": you should have given
   more than a few hours' notice.

   A real American Muslim who knows these issues will wipe the floor with
   you guys. After all, the average American Muslim may not agree with
   you on all things theological, but virtually none are terrorists or
   violent or insane. I somehow doubt such people will be represented in
   this show, but I can hold out hope.

   Shorter response: give a little more advance announcement, guys. These
   are complicated issues. You don't just say "hey, here's a big
   complicated issue, can you talk about it in-depth in the next 4 hours
   and sound coherent?"

   I know I hate it when people do that to me.

   I hope DW readers participate anyway though. And wish the All American
   Bloggers all good will, and God's blessing.

References

   1. http://www.allamericanblogger.com/podcast/
   2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dawoodi_Bohra