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If you say, "no, I don't think muslims should be violent in this way" then automatically, you are not the target of the cartoon.
You embody the hopes of all westerners that decent muslims will take back their religion and rid it of the individuals that are guilty of supporting violent acts.
I agree with this, very much, it is the actions of a minority which provoke the hostile views of islam. In the same way, I do not take offense at jokes or comments about paedophile priests or the IRA because I know they do not refer to me.
Fi_Sabilillah, the bit in blue... I am very much a pacifist, I believe only god can decide when someone dies, it is not for me to make that decision as a punishment to them. The whole time they are alive, they have the chance to redeem themselves.
When people kill in the name of my religion, I think 'well, they are not one of us, not truly' so I am curious to find out more about islam and why there is so much publicity about killing infidels being acceptable, and what your scripture says about this, where people get this idea from, and how many people hold it...
I am also curious as to the lifestyles of muslims living in a culture with different values to theirs, to what extent one tries to integrate, and to what extent one fights to change the things that make it difficult, even when these things are integral to the 'indiginous' culture... lots of questions!
really, I want to correct my own misconceptions, and have more information to pass on to my more bigoted friends!