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From: goer@midway.uchicago.edu (Richard L. Goerwitz)
Newsgroups: soc.religion.islam
Subject: Re: Some questions from an infidel :-)
Message-ID: <1990Oct31.011517.10582@wpi.WPI.EDU>
Date: 31 Oct 90 01:15:17 GMT
References: <1990Oct30.161211.7903@wpi.WPI.EDU>
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In <1990Oct30.161211.7903@wpi.WPI.EDU> William (Bill) Mayne writes:
>
> ...I note that Rushdie says one of the main charges, that he portrays
>the prophet Mohammed's wives as prostitutes, is not correct. Be that as
>it may, I confess compassion for a man who will have to spend the rest
>of his life in hiding and may well be killed for what he has written. 
>I am apalled by the intolerance and violence shown by some segments of 
>the Moslem world.

I have to admit that I found myself agreeing with Rushdie, in the sense
that I thought most Muslims would not overreact to his work.  I was very,
very shocked to see the informal street poll show this to be incorrect.
I wonder if they somehow edited out the more level-headed replies, show-
ing only the "death votes."  Sometimes there is a feeling in the press
that Muslims are all a bunch of irrational killers, and it is not unheard
of that they would edit a segment to reflect this feeling.

What do people in this newsgroup think?

-Richard (goer@sophist.uchicago.edu)