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Some random counterpoints to your post that someone accidentally modded up (there is no other logical explanation aside from the mod also a troll)

"The Free Muslims Coalition believes that there can NEVER be a justification for terrorism." (first line on their "positions" page)

http://theamericanmuslim.org/t... (fatwa agains terrorism)

http://www.thedailybeast.com/a...

Its a good thing all the red states have eliminated poverty with all their charity...oh wait, Texas with all its oil riches is #5 in poverty in the US. FYI, the bible belt is all about sharia law when you consider it translates more or less into "religous law". The only difference is which 1000 year old book you take instructions from on how to oppress women and non-believers.

there is actually *no* prohibition [of blasphemy] in the Quran... the Quran decrees no earthly punishment for blasphemy — or for apostasy (abandonment or renunciation of the faith), a related concept.

Koran (4:89) - "They wish that you should disbelieve as they disbelieve, and then you would be equal; therefore take not to yourselves friends of them, until they emigrate in the way of God; then, if they turn their backs, take them, and slay them wherever you find them; take not to yourselves any one of them as friend or helper."

Is there some problem with the translation? Seems fairly clear to me.

Take it up with the guy (who I presume is a Muslim) who wrote the NYT article, I was simply quoting and conceding that he probably knows more about this than I (and most /.'ers) do. However, according to this Qur’an 4:89 Commentary, the quote you listed is (commonly) taken out of context (the link has the full verse) and in context really means:

... this verse also only commands Muslims to fight those who practice oppression or persecution, or attack the Muslims.

... These verses were revealed by God to Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), at the time when Muslims were attacked by the non-Muslims of Makkah on a regular basis.

I am not even remotely knowledgeable, but it seems like something open to a bit of interpretation. Wouldn't it be nice if those people doing the interpretation and passing that on to their followers, focused on interpretations that involved killing fewer people?

www.vanityfair.com/politics/2012/07/benjamin-netanyahu-on-israel-mitt-romney
http://globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=25003
http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/islamophobia_no_longer_even_questioned

(everyone has a very slanted take on this, so I thought I'd post a cross-section)

I haven't heard anything about "wiping the Jewish world off the map" either; The Iranian government wants the Israeli government gone as it is unabashadly anti-Islam; the Israeli government wants to nuke Iran because it sees the Iranian government as an anti-Zion threat.

Both sides are high on rhetoric, and have been for hundreds of years. The US supports both sides, but is interested in keeping Jewish-controlled Israel in control of Jerusalem and Gaza. Tehran wants the state of Israel, as erected by the west, removed from the map. Literally. They're not talking about nuking Israel, they're talking about changing the political makeup and boundaries of the physical area. This is the politics of the situation, and has nothing to do with individual intolerance or hate -- those are a completely separate issue.

Put a different way: Iran wants Israel off the map the same way that Yugoslavia is now off the map, and the same way that the colony of Hong Kong is now off the map (or the USSR for that matter).

Of course, Iran dreams of being Persia again as well....

If any of the post-9/11 acts of violence by muslims have been denounced by the thought leaders of Islam, I've never once heard it. Apparantly neither have the terrorists. Perhaps they should denounce louder.

Maybe you just need to listen better because they do it all the time,

Here's just the latest - over 80 imams, scholars, community leaders, journalists, authors, and cartoonists have signed a denunciation of the extremists who scared the "draw muhammad day" artist into hiding. Funny thing about that - her cartoon was hijacked by anti-muslim extremists, not free-speech advocates, just muslim haters looking for any sort of politically correct cover for their raging.

What her cartoon expressed and what the haters made it into were polar opposites. Kinda like the way the original danish cartoon issue was ginned up with 3 totally fake and unpublished images created by al-qaeda associated imams looking to ignite conflict.

Why the cheap shot against the "left"? You could say I'm a "leftie" (especially by US standards), and I'm pissed off by this.

Because there has been an internal division among the left (of which I consider myself a proud member) about the limits of free speech. Some openly deride the value of free speech in favor of hate speech laws, campus/employer speech codes[3][5], laws prohibiting "defaming or insulting religion"[6]. Outside the US, there appears to be no limit to prosecutions for even trivial insults against Christianity[1] or Islam[2]. In a most bizarre ruling from Canada, apparently you can be sued for libel for calling someone an 'enemy of free speech' in response the plaintiff's initiation of various cases before the CHRC that were, in fact, attacks on speech[4].

Slashdot has a particular brand of leftism that is largely against these attacks on free speech but it would be silly to think that this represents a worldwide view. There are significant attacks on free speech from the left (and, as always, from the right as well on different issues) and it would behoove us to pay attention and confront our fellow lefties that are clamoring for European-style (or even Canadian-style) regulations of 'hate speech' and the like.

[1] http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/crime/atheist-given-asbo-for-leaflets-mocking-jesus-1952985.html
[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trial_of_Geert_Wilders
[3] http://volokh.com/tag/rodriguez-v-maricopa/
[4] http://www.nelligan.ca/e/PDF/Warman_Court_Decision.pdf
[5] http://www.tuftsdaily.com/2.5511/csl-hearing-turns-spotlight-on-controversial-source-pieces-1.590986
[6] http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/combating_defamation_of_religions/

"A World Public Opinion (WPO) survey done in collaboration with the University of Maryland published in January 2007 reported that 51% of Americans believed bombings and other types of attacks intentionally aimed at civilians are sometimes justified. According to a May 22 2007 PEW survey, only 13% of American Muslims hold a similar sentiment when asked about suicide bombings against civilian targets." source

That verse was part of a story about the Egyptian Pharoh _and_ you mistranslated it too.

(55) Verily, the vilest creatures in the sight of God are those who are bent on denying the truth and therefore do not believe.

http://www.theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/through_the_looking_glass_quran_855/

I can find a few:

http://www.freemuslims.org/news/article.php?articl e=32

http://www.freemuslims.org/

http://www.unc.edu/~kurzman/terror.htm

http://groups.colgate.edu/aarislam/response.htm#St atements%20from%20Leading%20American%20Muslim%20Or ganizations:

http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/arti cles/muslim_voices_against_extremism_terrorism_par t_ii_statements_by_organizatio/0012210

These are all sites easily found with a google search on muslims against 9/11. Did you even bother to find any evidence of your statement that none had spoken out against it? Some of these people are Muslim scolars, people raised in the middle east. Yet they apose the terrorist attacks?
You are just ignoring whats in front of you because you don't want to hear it. Remember that these terrorists are called extreamists. Alot of the rest of the Muslim and Islamic population in the middle east is afraid of them or don't understand enough to protest. Even so you can still find hundreds of instances on the internet not to mention Muslims that I have spoken to personally.

"The Free Muslims Coalition is a nonprofit organization made up of American Muslims and Arabs of all backgrounds who feel that religious violence and terrorism have not been fully rejected by the Muslim community in the post 9-11 era."