Now check out what al-Qaeda is saying in an attempt to demonstrate that this statement is false: "We will break up the cross, spill the liquor and impose head tax, then the only thing acceptable is a conversion (to Islam) or (killed by) the sword."
I hope you don't think an "al Qaeda-linked extremist group" is the voice of Islam now? If over a billion Muslims were following this, well...do I even have to finish this thought for you?
I also notice the article quoted said:
The authenticity of the statement could not be independently verified.
And as to non-Muslims having to pay a special tax that Muslims don't have to pay in an Islamic state, I believe this is also supposed to make them exempt from military service. And you didn't mention the tax Muslims pay that non-Muslims don't.
I don't mind protests, but for things to turn violent is just wrong.I'm afraid they feel threatened and under attack in much the same way as many of you here feel threatened by them. And yes, I am glad you are not violently rioting when you feel threatened...but I do worry about what is going on beneath your calm exteriors, reflected in your words agains Muslims, and how that may be externalized in the future...
The article Mary shared was interesting. Yes, there are reasons people turn to violent protests and terrorism, however wrong it is to do so. And all too often the rest of us would rather overlook these reasons than do anything to solve the root problems which, imo, is far more political than religious.
"Participants in terror tend to be men in their twenties or thirties who are ferociously angry because of powerful feelings of humiliation" (emphasis mine), he wrote. He identified a few potential sources of such humiliation, such as a lack of political and economic opportunity, then added that terrorists strongly identify with a group, society or culture they perceive as oppressed or exploited.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZqbDiN2uYcQ
~Megan