Link:
http://www.beliefnet.com/faiths/islam/articles/10-reasons-you-should-not-fear-muslims.aspx
I do have to take minor issue with one statement the author makes, which is when he says that "never in history has 1 percent of a nation's population succeeded in taking over the other 99 percent". One might argue that it is the richest 1% of the US economically that is running the country against the interests of the other 99% in some respects- this was the point of the Occupy WallStreet movement, which I generally agreed with (I say "generally", because of course I am not necessarily in agreement with every single thing anyone who was vaguely associated with that grassroots movement ever uttered- I just agree with the general gist that income inequality is an important issue that should addressed by the government).
However, in the context the article is talking about, where they speak of a religious, cultural, or ethnic minority; the author's point is largely correct in context. I'm racking my brain trying to think of counter examples. I remember whites ruling in South Africa as a minority, but I think that was greater than 1% (Someone may want to fact check that.). Prior to the second Iraq War, Iraq was ruled by it's Sunni minority, even though the [bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse]te were the majority, but the Sunni minority was at least a third of the country, a lot greater than 1%.
The larger point of the article is a good one, pointing out stats like that less than 0.0002 percent of Americans were killed by Muslims from 2001-2015. That isn't to say that terrorism isn't a real and important issue, it is, but it's easy to lose sight of the fact that you are far more likely to die of a heart attack, in a car accident, or any number of ways than you are to die as a result of some sort of attack by Muslims. In fact, as the article points out, more terrorist incidents are perpetrated by non-Muslims than by Muslims.
So, our fear of Muslims is perhaps overblown relative to the actual risk that we'll be killed in an event perpetrated by Muslims. Most Muslims go about living their lives as peacefully as most Christians do. There is a small minority that has been radicalized and wants to kill us, true, and we do have to defend ourselves, but we shouldn't lose perspective and paint all Muslims with the same negative brush or encourage government action that persecutes all Muslims, chips away excessively at the civil liberties Americans enjoy in general, and so on and so forth. That's not to say we should do nothing, it's just to say that we should understand the problem for what it is and do a basic cost/benefit analysis of each elements of our responses and changes to our way of life instead of just agreeing to everything without considering the consequences. A carefully considered measured response is probably best.
http://www.beliefnet.com/faiths/islam/articles/10-reasons-you-should-not-fear-muslims.aspx
I do have to take minor issue with one statement the author makes, which is when he says that "never in history has 1 percent of a nation's population succeeded in taking over the other 99 percent". One might argue that it is the richest 1% of the US economically that is running the country against the interests of the other 99% in some respects- this was the point of the Occupy WallStreet movement, which I generally agreed with (I say "generally", because of course I am not necessarily in agreement with every single thing anyone who was vaguely associated with that grassroots movement ever uttered- I just agree with the general gist that income inequality is an important issue that should addressed by the government).
However, in the context the article is talking about, where they speak of a religious, cultural, or ethnic minority; the author's point is largely correct in context. I'm racking my brain trying to think of counter examples. I remember whites ruling in South Africa as a minority, but I think that was greater than 1% (Someone may want to fact check that.). Prior to the second Iraq War, Iraq was ruled by it's Sunni minority, even though the [bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse][bless and do not curse]te were the majority, but the Sunni minority was at least a third of the country, a lot greater than 1%.
The larger point of the article is a good one, pointing out stats like that less than 0.0002 percent of Americans were killed by Muslims from 2001-2015. That isn't to say that terrorism isn't a real and important issue, it is, but it's easy to lose sight of the fact that you are far more likely to die of a heart attack, in a car accident, or any number of ways than you are to die as a result of some sort of attack by Muslims. In fact, as the article points out, more terrorist incidents are perpetrated by non-Muslims than by Muslims.
So, our fear of Muslims is perhaps overblown relative to the actual risk that we'll be killed in an event perpetrated by Muslims. Most Muslims go about living their lives as peacefully as most Christians do. There is a small minority that has been radicalized and wants to kill us, true, and we do have to defend ourselves, but we shouldn't lose perspective and paint all Muslims with the same negative brush or encourage government action that persecutes all Muslims, chips away excessively at the civil liberties Americans enjoy in general, and so on and so forth. That's not to say we should do nothing, it's just to say that we should understand the problem for what it is and do a basic cost/benefit analysis of each elements of our responses and changes to our way of life instead of just agreeing to everything without considering the consequences. A carefully considered measured response is probably best.
