Thoughts on radicals within Muslim communities

I've been reading in the news lately how Tony Blaire, the UK Prime Minster, has been reaching out the Muslim leaders in the UK to ask them to help find the radicals within their faith to prevent more attacks like what happened in London.

The response from the Imans has been less than overwhelming. As usual, they always qualify their answers and support with a Big But. They always say, "But what about the Palistinians? But what about Iraq?", and ad naseum. But I digress.

Obiously, radical Muslims that decided to become suicide bombers do not work in a vacumn. They must have had encouragement and support. They all just didn't wake up one morning, learn how to build bombs that fir in backpacks, and all go to London and blow themselves up at the same time my coincidence.

However, I think that is is a mistake to assume that the circle of people involved is large. That is large enough for tips to come in to the police. The reason the pleas to the British muslims seem to be ignored is simply because the vast majority don't know what the hell they are talking about.

It would be the same as if an FBI agent showed up at your church and asked for your help indentifying those in your congregation that support violent anti-abortion protestors. You would say to yourself, "Are you kidding? What do I know about these nuts? I don't have anything in common with them. I don't know any." Just because the radical calls himself Christian, and claims to be fighting for Chritian beliefs, doesn't mean that most Christians know anything about them, or even condon them.

Further, to then demand that the same Christians then go loudly protest against these unknown radicals is silly.

In the UK, and here in Australia, the governments have responded to critisim of religion by passing blastphomy laws. It is illegal in Australia to trash talk abother faith. A christian preacher is currently being prosecuted because he gave a sermon pointing out what he saw where the faults of Islam.

This law was passed with the encouragement of the Australian muslims.

This is insane. Rather than pass laws making it illegal to diss someone else's faith, they should have passed a law telling the faith to get thicker skin. What happened to "stick and stones may break my bones. But words will never hurt me"? They already have laws on the books making it illegal to harm someone or property. But to make free speach illegal is going too far.

Their faith should be stong enough to stand up to critisim. They should be answer questions, and dispell misunderstandings. Why are the muslims so afraid of people? Are they hiding something? Why is it they are allowed to dish out critisim, but not take any?

The answer is because one of the tenants of the faith is that it is perfect. Therefore, all critisim must be nothing but an attack from an ignorant infidel. The concept of discussing the downsides or faults doesn't exist because there are no downsides or faults.