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Summary: It's about time...
Review:
As a Muslim growing up in the USA, it has always been hard for me to be named a terrorist everytime I read the paper or turn on the television.Although many of these facts are known by the Islamic community, which has written about the prejudice and bias against Islam, no book until now was available for all Americans to read. In his book, Paul Findley, described as "First class" (Christian Science Monitor) and "Straightforward and valid" (Washington Post), confronts, as well as explains the false images of Islam and Muslims in America throughout the past few decades. I certainly believe this is one of those books that must be read, not only for the Muslims that are desperate to get a brake, but also for the Americans who think to themselves after Headline News; "How can this religion have over one billion followers if it's about blowing up everything they see?" Hopefully, this book will have great positive effect on Americans and their idea of Islam...
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Summary: From a Muslim Convert
Review: A beautiful book one that addresses many false stereotypes of Islam. This book is very timely especially when innocent Muslim Americans and Muslim immigrants along with Sikhs and Hindus are being unfairly attacked in hate crimes following 9/11. As Findley points out such hate crimes are largely based on ignorance of the tenets of Islam and a shameful unfair collective blame placed upon these groups. Findley is both balanced and fair pointing out that the vast majority of Muslims like their fellow monothiests, Christians and Jews condemn extremist who use religion to justify horrible deeds. Findley also points out similarities between Islam, Juddaism and Christianity that many Americans will be surprised and delighted to discover. Findley is a man to be commended and risked his own reputation and even his seat in Congress to defend Muslims. He continues to be a great advocate on behalf of Muslims and Arabs. This is a book worthy of sharing with friends and family alike.
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Summary: Simply Incredible
Review: Before I read this book, all I had thought was that many muslims were terrorists or supported terrorism.(I got most of these ideas from watching movies like Executive descision and others) After I read this book I was stunned, such a rich, diverse and extraordinary religion, the Veil or Hejab that women wear in my opinion was wrong I thought at the time, no more I see it so much differently after I read this book. It's about respect, I also read other books after this one about Sharia(Islamic Law) and I found more examples of respect towards women, such as rape, in Sharia a rapist is swiftly given death, no man can touch a woman without her consent. It got me thinking afterwards and I also read up on religions and world statistics, Islam is the second largest religion in the world today with 1.3billion followers, it is also the fastest growing, and soon will be the largest. Most of the converts in the U.S. are women. in the past 2 years there have been many great documentaries that clear up misconseptions of this religion. The most notable was Islam: Empire of faith, excellent film. I urge people not to judge this religion based on what you see in the movies, look into it, talk with muslim people, read the english translation of the Quran if you can. Get this book, it will teach you alot. I'd like to thank Mr. Findley for this excellent book.
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Summary: Excellent view of Americans and Muslims
Review: For individuals who which to know more about the connections between Muslims and Americans, this is the book. Even as a graduate student, no other book taught me more about the Muslim mindset. Compared to Findley's other book, "THEY DARE TO SPEAK OUT", this is a far more optimistic tome. I particular enjoyed the section where the Constitution melds perfectly with traditional Islamic belief. I also liked learning more about why Muslims dress the way they do, how men/women interect, and the growing political power. Sadly, this book has a flaw that is not its own fault; it was released just before the 9/11 attacks, and I felt that the attacks cast a shadow over the book that needed explaining. I recommend "THEY DARE..." to cover this.
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Summary: Muslims and Non-Muslims should read it
Review: I needed to have an American Perspective of Islam (a good one), and this book gave it to me and so much more. It is truely amazing how the mind can be so limited to certain people if we choose to, and can be expanded to contain the whole picture if we choose to as well.
I love this book, Mr Findley gives an Informative view of the Muslims of America. that's why I Would recommend it to Muslims. as for Non-muslims, this just could be their chance to know the face behind the fake mask stereotype images tries to put on Islam.
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Summary: It's a book must read for muslims and non-muslims
Review: I read this book, from cover to cover...,
for every single muslim (practicig or not) living in the USA, Canada, Australia, Western Europe, should read it, coz it'll open your eyes what we should do to change this sterotype attacks against us, and it'll teach you how we should work to gain our rights (working as indiviual or as group or with islamic orgnizitions in these countries) (like CAIR for instance).
For non-mulims, this book is not written in manner to make the people convert to islam, it's written in way to make the people understand islam and muslims. this book had been written by christine american and a former american congress man, so he has nothing to gain when he is showing the true face of islam and muslims.
finally thank you Mr. Findley for this wonderful book...
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Summary: It's Time to Move Away From Our Sterotypes
Review: I thought this book was really great for several reasons. As always, because of the horrific acts done by particular groups or people under the name of Islam, Islam has been greatly misunderstood. I realized it's time for me, and any person who believes in understanding each other correctly, to rise out of the darkness the media has placed us in, and find out for ourselves what Islam actually means. Every religion has radical people who use the beliefs to their own advantage. However, this does not mean we can judge the religion by the actions of this one group. Should we judge Christianity by looking at how the Nazis used Christianity? Should we judge Judaism or any other religion or group by what some minority radicals do? Of course not! This book is really recommended for anyone to who realizes it's time to to move away from sterotypes of each other and to think of our similarities, not our differnces.
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Summary: Worth your time and money!
Review: Paul Findley does Islam no favor in this thinly veiled bit of propaganda. Islam?s status as one of the world?s great religions, worthy of study and praise, remains without question. Nor, should anyone think Islam to be synonymous with terror. Findley, however, goes even further, by glossing over the murder and violence inflicted by Islamic terror groups, instead describing them as something more akin to the Shriners or Masons. His discussion of organizations like Hezbollah and Hamas, largely ignores those groups history of kidnapping and murdering Americans or their status on most lists of terror organizations. Instead, Mr. Findley focuses on their work running soup kitchens and hospitals, all the while neglecting how those works help feed the stream of suicide bombers they unleash on the unwary. Mr. Findley is not a scholar of Islam. A lackluster ex-congressman, Mr. Findley in an unoriginal stroke, decided to blame his defeat on that ubiquitous target, Jews. Since leaving public life, he makes his living giving lectures against Israel and as a shill for various authoritarian Arab governments. For those truly interested in learning about Islam, there are many sources worth reading. For a good historical overview, I suggest Bernard Lewis. Other excellent sources are available for studies of religion and theology. This piece of propaganda, however, is not worth your time.
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Summary: Extremely important!
Review: The importance of this book cannot be overstressed. Nowadays, when distorted and inaccurate images of Islam so strongly pervade the West, this highly momentous contribution provides a valuable antidote to islamophobia. Why is it that when mainstream media describe Islam, they only use the word in conjunction with some of the following nouns: fundamentalism, terrorism or extremism? Why do they focus only on certain minority groups within Islam that by no means are representative of the entire Islamic community. There is and there always will be extremism in Christianity, Judaism and Islam but as it stands today, the entire focus is on Islam. Why has no one spoken of Orthodox Christian fundamentalism when Bosnian Serbs were committing abhorrent crimes against Bosnian Muslims in Bosnia? Bosnian Serbs destroyed every single mosque (approximately 600 in Serb-controlled areas) while almost every church remained intact in the areas controlled by Bosnian Muslims. Almost 90% of Bosnian Muslims have been expelled from Republika Srpska while many Serbs still live in Sarajevo, Tuzla etc. In 1995, Bosnian Serb forces committed one of the worst massacres in Europe since World War II killing approximately 9,000 Muslims in Serbrenica. Many Muslims report being called "bloody Turks" by Serb soldiers even though all such links are preposterous let alone completely groundless. What connection can there possibly be between Bosnian Muslims and today's Turks? None! If these acts are not indicative of Orthodox Christian fundamentalism then I do not know what is. Before the war in Bosnia began, Serb intellectuals frequently portrayed Muslims as intractable fundamentalists who belonged in the Middle East. Islam was and still is considered by the majority of Serbs an abberation. Even the recipient of the Nobel Prize, Ivo Andric, described Muslims in his book The Bridge on the Drina as atavistic people whose views were reactionary and completely incompatible with those of the Westerners. Andric also asserted in his book that Bosnian Muslims in fact were treacherous and cunning converts who betrayed their Christian brothers. Another highly influential writer of Serbia, Vuk Draskovic, urged the Serbs to annihilate all Bosnian Muslims as they allegedly posed a threat to "Greater Serbia". Similar views are constantly voiced through Serbia. During the course of the Bosnian war, Russians and Greeks never condemned Serb atrocities in Bosnia and they sought to prevent a military intervention in Bosnia against their Orthodox Christian brothers. Once again, a clear and unequivocal example of Orthodox Christian fundamentalism and yet no mention of this fact in mass media. Secularized, Bosnian Muslims were and still are much less religious than their Serb and Croat counterparts. Even though Serb nationalism has been extremely well documented by many eminent Western scholars, none has shed light on Orthodox Christian fundamentalism. Similarly, there is no discussion of Jewish extremism in the Western media in spite of the flagrant Israeli violations of human rights. When Isrealis kill the Palestinians then it is in self-defence but when the Palestinians kill Israelis then it is a clear act of terrorism. When Israelis assassinate civilians who happen to be in the vincinity of the so called terrorists then it is collateral damage. The abominable acts perpetrated by the Israelis are always somehow justified in the corporate media, the opposite is never true of the deeds committed by the Palestinians. Thus, the corporate media rarely if ever account for Christian or Jewish extremism. Furthermore, in a study conducted by the Wall Streed journal, prominent Arab Americans were asked what they thought fuelled the Arab hatred for the American government. The answer was unanimous: UNCONDITIONAL U.S. SUPPORT FOR ISRAEL. In order to be able to obliterate terrorism we have to examine its roots. Given the results of this study, it should not be so difficult or is it? Highly recommended!!
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Summary: You call these folks moderate????
Review: This book does takes America's False Images of Islam (murdering terrorists) and shows how there are not only true, but even more true.
Findley is able to get a few moderate folks to say some nice things. But what they can't do is say anything nice about democracy, Israel, the Jews, women's rights, etc.
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