Islam in its suchness does not promote violence in any way, but there are places in the Q'uran which can be taken out of context, from what I've heard (never read the book), in conversation with many middle eastern muslim friends. My understanding is, there are fanatics who use this selective truth twisting in order to "brainwash" the most loyal and easily influenced. They are predators who use humans as pawns to further their political agendas. This is much easier for them to do over there, as the large majority of the population is very devout, which facilitates an easier twisting of the minds of the impressionable. These people feel the "need" to die for their cause, and actually believe it is the will of God. They are religiously trained according to the precepts chosen by their teachers, and do not get a representative education of the true meaning of Islam.
Therefore, it would be unfair to relate their actions to Islam at all. One could accomplish the same feat using any other religeon, I would imagine, but obviously for them, Islam is the way to go, as it is the predominant faith practiced, and offers the side benefit of us painting all muslims with the smae brush.
Good thread, excellent topic, and one I think we should all try to understand. These are simply my opinions, based upon numerous discussions with people who have immigrated to Canada for primarily political and safety reasons from Afghanistan, Iraq, and Iran.
As a side note, I would like to offer that these folks have worked for me as their immediate supervisor. I have found them all to be hardworking, honest, devoted to their families, and generally honourable people. I have employed people educated in their homelands as doctors, scientists, engineers, journalists, etc., who would work for $5.00 per hour plus tips, that they may feed their families, provide for their children, and save a little to send back home. These are selfless qualities that I have rarely, if ever, found in a Canadian born citizen.
