Ah, the ubiquitous straw man of the ill-informed apologist. The only people who air this claim (all Muslims are terrorists) are a few right-wing nutjobs and apologists for Islam. But I guess it's easier to rail against than "Islamic ideology is a major factor in Islamist terrorism, and Islamic sectarianism is a major factor in the situation in the Middle East".
Why is it unacceptable to oppose (or even hate) something that you find unacceptable (or even abhorrent)?
Ah, the old "don't criticise Islam because it just turns peaceful Muslims into Islamist terrorists" argument.
Why doesn't criticising Christianity, Judaism, Neo-Cons, Marxists, Greens, etc, etc, also turn them into violent extremists?
Without the passages that explicitly endorse or encourage violence against those who oppose Islam, it would be more difficult to convince them to be violent against those who oppose Islam. To claim that pointing out that Islam contains passages that promote violence, oppression and discrimination encourages Muslims to be violent, oppressive and discriminatory is putting the cart before the horse. Admittedly, there may be some Muslims who are unaware of the "bad bits" until they are pointed out by critics, but that is not the responsibility of the critic.
Do you blame the doctor who tells a patient they have cancer?
You make it sound like this is some sort of national sport. Muslims in Britain are probably as safe, and have have as many rights, as they are anywhere in the world.
Trouble with this statement is that it is not supportable. I have no problem with people separating themselves by one means or another - I don't think it's healthy, but it's up to them. However, to claim that following Islam and respecting liberal secular democratic ideals are compatable is simply false.
If you follow Islam, you believe that the Quran is the literal and perfect word of god. unchangable and acceptable in its entirety. That is not open to debate, it is a strict requirement.
If you believe that about the Quran, then you believe that husbands may beat disobedient wives, women inherit half the man's share, women's testimony is worth less, that slavery is acceptable, that using female captives for sex is acceptable, that non-Muslims are lesser people, that homosexuality should be punished, that consensual adult lovers should be flogged, etc, etc (all under appropriate conditions!)
Obviously, the majority of Muslims do not practice these things, but they still believe that they are valid and acceptable rules.
Again, you present the fallacious "I shall use limited personal experience to generalise the whole, but I shall criticise anyone else who does the same but arrives at a different conclusion" argument.
If you are going to use the example of a small number of specific Muslims to represent Islam, you cannot complain when others do the same.
I will continue to criticise religions on the basis of their illogicality, lack of reason and threat to the progress of civilisation, terrorit attack or none, if it's all the same with you.
Hope that's ok. Wouldn't want you getting upset and all terroristy. (Yes, I know that you claim not to be a Muslim, but I am still attacking and ridiculing your position and belief, so surely your argument still applies. Or is it only criticising the violent elements of Islam that makes people violent?)
If a perpetrator explicitly uses Islamic ideology as a justification for their actions, it is only reasonable to accept that the ideology played some part in their actions.
However, apportioning of blame and criticising the content of the idology are two different issues.
Have you actually attempted to examine the actions, behaviour, causes and justifications such attackers use, rather than just chatting ****?
Why are there so many attackers who did not have *****y lives? Who are eductated, comfotable, 2nd and 3rd generation citizens of secular democtracies?
Exactly. It allows them to carry out appaling acts because they believe that their god permits or even encourages it. And they do this because the permission and encouragement is explicitly there in their holy scriptures, but many were not aware of it because they are taught a cherry-picked and sanitised version, engineered to be compatable with western society. But it's not what Allah wants, and when they become aware of it, they feel that they have been deceived.
A telling excerpt from this Radio 4 discussion was the imam who was brought in to a prison to talk to a Muslim inmate who was spreading radicalisation, with the intention of explaining to him where and why he was wrong. The imam came out of the room looking worried and admitted "he's got a point".
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06sb42j