By Their Fruit You Shall Know Them

An interesting poll was released by the Huffington Post concerning America's views of Islam. Across the board, with only minor difference between political parties, the answer was "Not so much." David French has an interesting piece in National Review about the poll wondering if the influence of 2 million Americans who have served in Islamic countries since 9/11 has been a major factor. He thinks the answer is probably "yes."

French describes a religion and the culture that is "shockingly broken":
 

Yes, they were in the middle of a war — but speaking from my own experience — the war was conducted from within a culture that was shockingly broken. I expected the jihadists to be evil, but even I couldn’t fathom the depths of their depravity. And it was all occurring against the backdrop of a brutally violent and intolerant culture. Women were beaten almost as an afterthought, there was a near-total lack of empathy for even friends and neighbors, lying was endemic, and sexual abuse was rampant. Even more disturbingly, it seemed that every problem was exacerbated the more religious and pious a person (or village) became.

Although French is willing to allow that there may be exceptions to this judgment, he nevertheless has not seen many (or any) that run counter to his characterization:

While it’s certainly unfair to judge Indonesia or Malaysia by the standards of Iraq or Afghanistan, it’s very hard to shake the power of lived experience, nor should we necessarily try. After all, when we hear stories from Syria, Yemen, Gaza, the Sinai, Libya, Nigeria, Somalia, Mali, Pakistan, and elsewhere they all fit the same depressing template of the American conflict zones. Nor is the dazzlingly wealthy veneer of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, or the other Gulf States all that impressive. 

 

Islam arose as a desert religion, just as harsh and oppressive as its birthplace. Time has not mellowed it. There are many Muslims who just want to live their lives in peace. I know some. But there are far too many in whom religious zeal burns with the intensity of the desert sun and withers and kills anything it touches that is unprotected. We cannot afford to turn a blind eye to a religion and its followers like that. 

www.nationalreview.com/corner/428349/hidden-reason-why-americans-dislike-islam-david-french