Rating: 
Summary: Disturbing Truths
Review: Once again we find an author with guts to tackle a controversial topic. The difficulty with criticising Islam is that it's believers maintain that it is 'perfect' that the Koran is the unaltered word of their god. So, to criticise their beliefs, you are criticising their god.However, this author tackles issues that need to be confronted, and he does so logcially. One negative reviewer stated that he does not put polygamy into historical context. This kind of relativism, that one person doing bad should be accepted because other people have done bad, simply does not work. You either accept that these things are bad, or you don't. Muslims don't, end of discussion. If you believe polygamy (that is, only a man marrying many women - why not a woman marrying many men), is equable, then you will have difficulty with this book's arguments. If, however, you believe that men shouldn't sleep with underage girls (as Muhammed did), or that women should be treated equally (Islamic courts say that a woman's testimony is worth half that of a man), then this book will be one you will want to read. This book explores these issues so that non-believers can find out what exactly Islam stands for. Many Muslims will say that Islam gives rights to women. Yes, it does, but these are so limited it's almost not worth mentioning. A case in point; property rights. This author points out that they still are entitled to half as much as men! Islam stands for peace! Yes, this too is true. Peace amongst Muslim men. Whilst they state "There is no compulsion in religion" that is only again, part of the story. The author shows that there are numerous Koranic injunctions to kill or war against non-believers. (Whether they mean all non-Muslims, or 'pagans' can be seen by the fact that Muslims themselves live out the injunction by waging war against ALL non-Muslims). Muhammed divides the world up, that area already under Muslim domination, and those areas that aren't but soon will be. The issue of the Crusades is also smartly dealt with by the author. For too long Westerners have had to apologise for these misadventures. If you want to be relativist, if that is your bent, then consider that
a) they happened 1000 years ago - Muslim agression is still happening.
b) they were a reaction against Muslim agression - no Muslim has ever apologised for waging war against Christendom (remember all that is now part of Turkey, northern Africa, much of the Middle East, was once Christian!)
c) they were not actions based upon the teachings of Jesus - Jihad is taught by Muhammed, who actually lead armies into battle, and massacred PoWs. There are numerous anti-Christian books also available on amazon, but are their authors in fear of their lives? How many authors has your local church condemned to death? In the past 200 years, how many busses have Christian fundamentalists blown up as suicide bombers? I would highly recommend this book to anyone who seeks to look at Islam without the biased of one who just accepts its tennets without logic, or question.
Rating:
Summary: By their deeds shall ye know them.
Review: Mere days after Black Tuesday, the date of the greatest atrocity ever visited upon Americans in their homeland, President Bush himself went to great pains to assure us that "Islam is a religion of peace." Since then, the phrase has become a sarcastic cliche as Americans have learned, via the usual media conduits, what Muslims the world around really think of us, of what happened to us, and of "what America deserves." Robert Spencer, a board member of the Christian-Islamic Forum and a frequent contributor to National Review, has assembled the contrary argument: that Islam is not a religion of peace, but rather a religion of war, a theological rationale for aggression against (and the subjugation of) non-Muslims. He presents it in Islam Unveiled. I find it most persuasive. Whether you agree or not, you'll find it hard to argue against. Spencer meticulously reviews the history of Islam, its inherently fundamentalist theology, and its inability to adapt to changing convictions about human rights. He finds it poised exactly where its founder, Muhammad, positioned it in the early seventh century after Christ: doctrinally rigid, unapologetic about its claimed right to impose itself on others by force, and unlikely to accommodate the liberalizing trends that took the rough edges off Christianity at the close of the Middle Ages. The importance of Islam Unveiled is that Spencer has confronted the objective evidence about Islam's nature without prejudice. Instead of starting from the benevolent Western position, and assuming that anything that calls itself a religion must share the moral precepts and respect for life of Judaism and Christianity, he looks at the behavior of Muslims, Muslim leaders, Muslim theorists, Muslim activist movements, and Muslim-dominated governments, and judges the Islamic faith accordingly. His conclusions are unpleasant, but they are too well substantiated for bien-pensants to wish them away. In his concluding section, "Does The West Really Have Nothing To Fear From Islam?," Spencer confronts one of the most ominous trends in world religion: the explosive birthrate among Muslims, in contrast to the bare-replacement birthrate among Jews and Christians. The projections point to the House of Islam outnumbering Christendom 30 percent to 25 percent by 2025, an imbalance that, despite the economic, military, and technological backwardness of the Muslim world, would force many changes upon the rest of us. If his assessment of the immiscibility of Islam and Western culture is correct, those changes will be for the worse. Read this disturbing book. Try your best to refute Spencer's case. I've tried... and failed.
Rating: 
Summary: Unpleasant Subject, but Important
Review: I've written the following with a liberal reader in mind. Of course, conservatives and can't-be-bothereds are free to read it, and may agree with much of what I say (first time for everything, I suppose). My friends, let's talk. Islam exists, which I hope is clear, and with its existence comes a history, a set of beliefs, and a mind-set. Histories can be interpreted and disputed, and belief systems covering a billion people are bound to show variation, but this does not mean that we cannot identify a set of properties common to many, or perhaps most adherents. It is not a statement of cultural arrogance or ethnocentrism to both acknowledge this and to study it, to categorize and even try to quantify it, and to make it relevant to the current day. In the case of Islam the result is just plain disturbing; there's just no other way to say it. Some claims made by defenders of Islam are that it is a religion of peace (Islam is not the Arabic word for peace, it means surrender or submission), that it is tolerant, that its treatment of women is wrongly portrayed and that it has been beaten up and humiliated by the West. Spencer systematically addresses a number of claims of this sort, and he does so rather thoroughly. Personally, I thought it was a little heavy on anecdotes, but these are useful too, and they are heavily footnoted for reference. A good feature that I was pleased to see was a constant connection between Islam as historically practiced and as practiced now. Islamic practices are described, and the relevant quotes from the Qur'an and other words are cited. Noting often that Islam is already what we would call fundamentalist, in that most Muslims accept the Qur'an as literally true, Spencer shows how these abuses continue into the present day. All backed by Islam. This forum is not the place to repeat the same details that are already in the book. What is important is that these facets of Islam are pervasive throughout the religion, and are very much a part of it. Is Islam abusive to women? For the most part, yes. To religious minorities? Yes. Spencer shines a bright spotlight on the claims of Islam, and the claims just don't hold up. In the chapter on the Crusades he points out that it was only four hundred years after Islam conquered most of its territory from Christians that the first Crusade tried to regain them. And now eight hundred years later the Muslims are still seething. Why weren't the Westerners allowed to be angry after only half that time? Why does no one point out that all the Islamic lands outside the Arabian Peninsula are the results of one giant successful crusade of their own? If there is one thing I found missing, it's more discussion about Islam as practiced in Western countries. This would have been helpful, either to make us wary or to put our minds at ease. I can't write this review without pointing this out, it's something I would like to have seen more of. So why is this review aimed at other liberals? Because a close and honest look at Islam shows that it is nothing if not conservative. And I mean conservative in a way that makes Jerry Falwell look like a cross dressing hippie. In this I suspect that the author would probably disagree. I should point out that Spencer is clearly a Christian and devoted more space than I wanted to comparing Islam to Christianity, unfavorably of course. On at least two occasions I caught him referring rather matter-of-factly to the "true" nature of God. But it is not pervasive enough to warrant ignoring what is still a fine book. My rather choppy analysis here probably does not show the focused and diligent effort Spencer makes in this detailed review of Islam as it is really practiced. Even if you think I'm full of it, at least read this or something to see what the other side is saying. You may be surprised. It may be unpleasant, but not everyone shares our values. Not everyone respects human rights (quotes provided in the book). Not everyone wants us all to work out our differences. Not everyone wants us to all just get along. You can ignore this possibility, but do so at your own risk.
Rating:
Summary: Disturbing but an awareness that we all need to possess.
Review: The book's cover displays a chilling photograph of the eyes of Mohammed Atta, one of the Islamic terrorist hijackers involved in the September 11 2001 atrocities. A fitting lead into this study of Islam and the underlying hatred behind these and other acts of terrorism. The writer has been a student of Islam for some 20 years and tries to explain without bias, what he personally declares as some of the misconceptions surrounding Islam. Whilst I might not agree with everything that the book contains, it is very well written and an extremely useful reference for those wishing to study these issues. The book states at the outset that most Westerners know very little about Islam and had little or no idea of the depth of hatred and hostility facing the West prior to September 11. The writer proceeds to declare that whilst the very many innocent Moslems should not be held guilty by association following these terrorist attacks, the likes of Osama bin Laden and co. actually meant precisely what they said & far from being extremists or perverters of Islam, they actually interpret Islam's tenets correctly. The book addresses how for many decades, endless incidents of violence, murder & terrorism have been publicly declared as 'having nothing to do with Islam'. Claims still being echoed by senior Western politicians who blindly insist that Islam is a 'peaceful religion' ignoring Islamic calls for worldwide domination and the destruction of the West and Israel. The book stating that to bracket Islam and peace is just wishful thinking with reference to the Islamic fighting against it's neighbours along the perimeter of the Islamic world, citing the violence against Hindus in India, Communists & Buddhists, Chinese, Jews and some 'Christian' entities. Islamic 'tolerance' of other religions is also studied with reference to the Quranic statement that 'anyone who converts from Islam to Christianity deserves to die'. Numerous incidents are mentioned where those refusing to convert to Islam have been instantly executed on the spot. Amongst the many other issues addressed are the distressing treatment of women & how they are victimised under Shariah or Islamic law plus the appalling human rights record in the Islamic world. Slavery still surviving in some Islamic countries such as Sudan, Saudi Arabia & Mauritania, together with the still present dhimmi status attached to non-Moslems who are still regarded as second class, inferior citizens. There is also an analysis of why the Islamic region is such a fertile breeding ground for violence. Looking into the Islamic mindset, we see how many modern day Moslems are being fed on a Quranic diet of anti-Jewish/anti-Western diatribe. The book studies the incentives and fervour behind Islamic homicide/suicide bombings, citing the rewards for such actions outlined in the Quran under Sura 56; 15-24. An example is quoted of a 11 year old Palestinian youth publicly declaring to his class-mates, "...I will make my body a bomb that will blast the flesh of Zionists, the sons of pigs and monkeys...I will tear their bodies into little pieces and cause them more pain than they will ever know." -His classmates responding "Allah Akhbar (God is great)" and his Palestinian teacher shouting, "May the virgins give you pleasure!" Speaking with a deep concern, I consider that this book is valuable in alerting people to the dangers of Islam which have impacted our lives and will no doubt impact our lives even more in the near future. There are two reasons which we must all be knowledgeable about this religion. Despite what many people say, what politicians and the media profess, Islam can here be seen as indeed a religion of war and bloodshed & that it is intent upon world domination. This is confirmed throughout many sections of the Quran and Hadith, the two main literary sources of Islam. To blindly ignore this, irrespective of how honourable the motives might seem, invites disaster. Might I respectfully recommend to those interested in these issues, another book on this subject by two learned professors Ergun Caner & Emir Caner, both of whom have converted from Islam to Christianity entitled " Unveiling Islam: An Insider's Look at Muslim Life and Beliefs" and also "The Decline of Eastern Christianity Under Islam: From Jihad to Dhimmitude: Seventh-Twentieth Century" by Bat Ye'or. Thank you.
Rating:
Summary: Doesn't Islam speaks for itself?
Review: Every Westerner and non-Muslim should read this book. Almost everyday, Islam is in the news. It is almost always associated with terrorism, hijackings, bombings and Muslim clerics (including many who are based in the US and UK) who preach hatred against Jews and America. How many American or British born Muslims have declared war on America? Yet, American and British Muslims (both converts and immigrants) and their politically correct apologist allies like Karen Armstrong maintain that "Islam means Peace". So, which is the real Islam? In all honesty, let me say this... I grew up in a Muslim country. Never have I heard that "Islam means Peace" or "Islam respects women". Any Westerner who believes them has little or no understanding of the Quran and the Hadith or Islam in general. If the Bible and the Torah were amended so that Christians and Jews are now obliged to kill apostates and blasphemers, conquer the world for their religions would we then be able to say that "Christianity and Judaism mean Peace too". If Muslim women are allowed to have up to four husbands, divorce any of them anytime by simply saying 'talaq' three times and if a Muslim man can only prove that he was raped by having four righteous female Muslim witnesses,....if Muslim men are obliged to cover their heads and their bodies..... can we then finally say that "Islam respects men too". What Muslims preach to their fellow Muslims and to Western potential converts are diametrically opposed. In the West, after every violent act committed in the name of Islam such as 9/11, many Westerners would before judging Islam, go out and buy books about Islam and start asking Muslims about Islam. Muslim proselyters take advantage of this fair minded thinking of Westerners together with their pre-conceived notion that all religions are the same (i.e. all religions teaches one to do good or all religions are equally guilty of causing friction and hatred). If Westerners are willing to set aside their political correctness, the fact that Islam is fundamentally a violent religion will be self-evident. Imagine if a group of Christian extremists were to hijack a plane and in the name of Christ, crashed it into a building full of innocent people in a Muslim country causing thousands to lose their loved ones. Would not the Christians of the world condemn them? On September 11th 2001, something similar happened in New York and there was great rejoicing throughout the Muslim world (including in my own country, which was not disclosed by the Western media for fear of a backlash against the Muslims living in the West). When surveys were conducted, they found a significant number of Muslims (the majority in many countries) who were very much supportive of September 11th. And for those Muslims who condemned the attack, their condemnation was a qualified one (i.e. there was some sort of justification such as US support for Israel). WHY IS THAT??? Now imagine, what would it take to get Christians, Jews, etc. to support such atrocity? Muslims say that on 9/11 it was "ISLAM WHICH WAS HIJACKED". If that was the case, I would presume that these Muslims would declare that Allah would naturally sent these HIJACKERS OF ISLAM to Hell !!! But of course, that is not the case. How do you think Allah should deal with the hundreds of thousands in Muslim countries who cheered, celebrated, danced on the streets, shoot in the air after they saw ISLAM BEING HIJACKED on 9/11 ??? ... The truth is that the Prophet Muhammad who is the founder of Islam, himself expelled 2 Jewish tribes from Medina (i.e. Banu Nadir and Banu Qoreiga) after seizing their possessions and decapitated all adult males of a third (Banu Quraiza) and enslaved the women and children. He fought 66 offensive wars in total to spread a religion which acknowledges him as prophet. All Muslims would know that "There is no compulsion in religion" of the Quran was made way earlier when Muhammad was in Mecca (when he was confident he could win the Meccans solely by his preaching!) and has since been abrogated. War against unbelievers is fundamental to Islam and Jihad is obligation of every able-bodied Muslim man. There are about 123 verses in the Quran exhorting violence including Jihad. A 'martyr' (i.e. a Muslim who dies in a Jihad) is ensure a place in Paradise with 72 virgins for his enjoyment. Which other religion teaches that? Please read this book together with Ibn Waraq's "Why I am not a Muslim" and Bat Yeor's "Dhimmi" and "Decline of Christianity".
Rating:
Summary: Very insightful ......
Review: I was deeply disturbed by this book since I had always been of the opinion that Islam, like Christianity and Judaism, was at it's core a peaceful religion. Spencer explains why this isn't true, and why it is so easy for radical Muslims to justify the murder of innocent people in the name of their faith. I particularly enjoyed how Spencer posed the title of each chapter as a question (for instance, "Does Islam Respect Human Rights?", "Is Islam Tolerant of Non-Muslims?", "Does Islam Respect Women?") then proceeded to back up his assertions that the answers to these questions is 'no'.
Rating:
Summary: Clear arguments about Islam
Review: This book is an attempt to argue that Islam is fundamentally different from other major religions in the way in which it teaches violence rather than peace, and in the way in which the Qur'an is valued by Muslims. Spencer and Pryce-Jones show very clearly that the Qur'an does not command peace, but instead tells Muslims to "slay the idolaters wherever you find them". He points out the Muslims will, under Islamic law, impose a tax on non-Muslims who live within Muslim countries which they can avoid only by converting to Islam. Especially good is his focus on the way in which the Qur'an is valued by Muslims as a literally true document of an infallible nature. Though he admits there are different interpretations of the document, he show that it is quite unlike the way in which Christians have viewed the Bible. In fact, there nearest parallel in Christianity or Judaism to how Muslims regard the Qur'an is found today in the doctrine of papal infallibility and Ordinatio Sacerdotalis - a definitively infallible document forever binding on Roman Catholics. The book shows that because of this, extremist groups have had an easy time gaining power in Islam, as the Wahhabis did in the eighteenth century to purify Islam. Because of the importance of the Koran and the fact that Wahhabis policies can be seen very frequently within it, they encountered little opposition. The same thing, Spencer and Pryce-Jones argue, is true of the Islamic scientists of the Middle Ages, who also disappeared when "fundamentalist" movements emerged within Islam. Similar things indeed happen in the Catholic Church with Opus Dei and Focolare, but not in Protestantism, where fundamentalism occurs only in tiny sects which rarely keep people's adherence for long. This strength of belief is simply unknown to most Westerners today, but it is very much a part of Islam and the Catholic Church hierarchy. It is why the hijackers were able to plan so patiently for the killer attack on America whilst Americans were not devoted to any serious cause that might counter the threat. Secularisation has left a vacuum in Western society as people do not know what the purpose of their life should be. Materialism and making money dominate under these conditions. Most chilling, though, is the way in which the book looks at the life of Muhammad and suggests that it was not by any means what we would call "saintly". He even suggests that Khomeini behaved similarly in his 1928 marriage, but the way he describes Muhammad as taking legitimately many wives and having repeated sexual intercourse with them after he became a prophet is quite surprising. It is hear that the Sunnah becomes so helpful because it reveals so much about Islam's beginnings and the life of Muhammad during that time. We see that not only was Muhammad sexually promicuous with young girls, he led armies into war during his prophethood, and his successors saw jihad against non-Muslims as a basic duty, leading to Islamic empires being established in the Middle Ages. These theocracies persist to this day. However, one sees similarities between Islam and pre-Reformation Europe, where the Church was the cetre of learning and its teachings were seen as absolutes defined by tradition. Though it does not look perfectly at how Islam contrasts, this is an excellent book which gives a strong hint that the Qur'an and Sunnah will not allow any modernasation or secularisation of Muslim nations.
Rating:
Summary: A good book - does not go far enough
Review: I understand why Spencer does not go farther, though maybe he is really a lover of Islamic culture for its positive aspects. But I would argue that there were poets of Stalinism, and architects and poets of the Third Reich - that does not excuse them from their support of an evil ideology. I am still in process. I have not finished the Koran, and as one who was raised to tolerance and humanist ideas, I feel I must explore this. But my readings of Koran and Hadith have shown me a Mohammed who was an evil little debauched creep. A creep who managed to make his way into history, by means of murder, lies and genocidal warfare, allocating booty to his followers, enslaving as he went. This is his lasting legacy. I'm sorry to say that in examining the base literature of Islam, and the "theology" it is simply awful. The ideas, the values, are hideous. The stories of the life of Mohammed make me ill. Robert Spencer's book has helped me to understand how Islam got so many adherents. He helped make it clear that almost nobody would have become Muslim, except because of fear for their life. Children, raised from babies will believe any sort of rot. And a system which systematically kills apostates cannot move. I travel a great deal. I am not some stay-at-home American who sits in front of the tube watching CNN. Mr. Spencer has pushed me a bit more, and the direction he pushed me in is that of a sense of extreme danger from these people. I remember a lecture I got from an Iranian years before 9-11, who told me, "You do not understand. These people are incredibly dangerous, these Muslims. I know. You do not. They want you dead. They really do." I didn't believe him then, not really. But as time goes on, I see that the closer I get to this culture and people, the more clear it is. And that is true of most I meet, including those who live in the context of Sharia, still oppressed by it.
Rating: 
Summary: Americans are a strange lot
Review: It amazes me how Americans always instinctively support the fundementalists. I am not speaking even about the funding of Al-Qaeda and similar groups but the repeated attempts to undermine the secular and moderate Muslim. The 1906 constitutional revolution and the 1950s democratic movement in Iran were overturned by British and American intervention according to the New York Times. And now when there is an opportunity when there is a sympathy towards America in countries like Iran when democratic aspirations of Iranians can be helped by American friendship, a factually flawed book, rehashing the works of Ali Dashti, does two things: one it says that the moderates are wrong and that the fundementalist are the true Muslims. Why would Mr Spencer want to promote this view? Haven't the fundementalist done enough to you and more to us? and secondly it equates all Muslims to the murderers who until recently were America's employees in Afghanistan. All freedom loving peoples of the world should be on the side of the right. Instead of hating people, support the democratic movement in Iran. A recent banned survey shows the Iranian people are 70% pro-American, reward their admiration of America by helping them be free like yourselves.
Rating:
Summary: Fair and honest
Review: Robert Spencer's review of the history of Islam, the present day practice of it, and the interpretations of the Koran by different followers of Islam is both fair and balanced. This book is well-researched, exceptionally well thought out, and powerful in its presentation of the facts and logical conclusions it offers. It ought to be required reading for all American high school students.
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