Ummmm, But They Were Muslims

These posts on social media are disappointing, “The people behind last night’s attacks weren’t Muslims. They were extremists using religion as vindication for their cowardice.”

Oh really? Ummmm, but they were Muslims. They don’t represent all Muslims, not all Muslims are “terrorists”, but these pricks WERE Muslims. Yes, your Muslim taxi driver doesn’t want to hurt anyone. Yes, the Muslim gas station attendant is just trying to get through the grueling workday. Yes, my Muslim family and friends came to America to have a better life and do their best to live according to the ideals of a civilized society. Yes, these people who obliterated hundreds of innocent people were Muslims. Are we not intelligent enough to discern that all these statements can be true?

When a priest molests a child, you don’t see posts on Facebook that say, “Father Paul has devoted his life to charity and he was never involved in this despicable event. Father Ted, well, he works hard to serve his church on Craggy Island. So please, people, understand that the person behind this heinous act wasn’t Catholic. He was an extremist pedophile using religion as a vehicle for his sexual deviancy.” You would never see that on Facebook! Mainly because the Catholic church would try to cover it up using their Illuminati like tactics, but, BUT most people would still agree that this is a problem within Catholicism.

I would never say, “America bombed and/or occupied Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, and Syria, and that America continues to be an imperialist nation, but the people who did this weren’t Americans. It was a bunch of money grubbing extremist neocon hawks.” That would be completely ignorant. Even though I didn’t vote for the crooks that started these wars nor have I supported their policies, as an American I can still see the blood on my hands for the actions of my country’s ideologies.

If the Paris attack was a lone occurrence it would be inappropriate to bring the attacker’s religion into the conversation; But planes have been flown through buildings, trains have been blown up, and YouTube videos have been posted to enlist warriors who will help in the fight to form a worldwide caliphate and a new Islamic State.

The Arab/Muslim world is fighting for their identity, and these groups are using suicidal warfare to ensure the success of their beliefs. This is going to continue, but I feel we’ll be more successful at eliminating this “threat” if we call a spade a spade and not play this politically correct game.

Before anyone goes on the offensive and calls me an “Islamophobe” or a “racist” or a “bigot”, let me point out that I was raised Muslim and I spent 25 years in Islam. I’ve been discriminated against many times for being a Muslim or Pakistani. Yet, even though I think it is wrong to treat someone based on their makeup/background, I can still recognize that the people who are committing these acts are Muslims.

Phew. Thank god I’m an Atheist.