Open your minds
If some do not like the loudspeakers on mosques, try putting a few bells up or loud chanting temples and see what happens! I cannot envisage ever changing my religion, or even my nationality no matter what influences are presented. As with all Muslims, being born one is not a choice I had, although my mother is not a Muslim. I also have no choice but to remain a Muslim throughout my life and to not acknowledge this fact is pure bigotry. But it is also a fact that most Muslims accept this fait accompli as Islam being the way of life and so many among us fail to perceive lack of religious choice as a reasonable argument, if challenged by a non-Muslim. The usual taunt is that I have been 'brainwashed' from birth, when it has been anything but that in my life, though the environment we live in being quite oppressive at times, with the misguided literally being dangerously bigoted and damagingly unreasonable. Those same people will not be reading this, or indeed understand any reason if they did. So what is the problem? As a Muslim country, 'Islamophobia' is not seen here or even recognised as an issue, but some of us realise that it is gaining enormous strength in other parts of the world. Sometimes I honestly become exasperated because quite often 'we' deserve much of the criticism, with all this one-way rhetoric whereby some are trying to force or impose our way of life on others and accept not a single word or action deemed contrary to our beliefs. Personally, I don't care what religion you are, I don't care what you practice, or what you believe in your heart, providing you do nothing to hurt others in any way, shape or form. But many condone retribution for anything considered anti-Islamic. However, it is a fact that we do not really have an argument regarding real choice and fanaticism is positively rising at an alarming rate. As much as one might argue that they can, nobody will stand up and question anything to do with 'our' religion, so it is allowed to flourish unstoppable. The list of things to ridicule is endless from the banning of mixed schools to music and alcohol sales and plastic dummies, to not punishing sexual deviants. Muslims endless, question other religions with impunity. I see nothing wrong with some education on world religions and beliefs, rather than attempt to deny their existence. To do so, must mean some very serious insecurity with your own beliefs and self-inflicted fear. Instead of broadening our minds to strengthen our resolve and beliefs, it seems that many of my extremely narrow-minded brothers and sisters are determined to nurture the world's Islamophobia by giving it new ammunition. Ebrahim http://www.gulf-daily-news.com/Story.asp? Article=234963&Sn=LETT&IssueID=31242
