by Ahmed Said
Sunday, December 20, 2009

I take this opportunity to write an article prompted by the recent anti-Islamic cartoons in St. Cloud, Minnesota. The cartoons were derogatory to Muslims because they were sexually explicit with depictions of the Prophet Mohamed.

Just read the cartoon story at http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2009/12/11/muslim-cartoons 

These anti-Islamic cartoons probably keep happening because of Islamophobia, which means unfounded fear of or hostility towards Islam. Islamophobia has increased in the West since the 911 attacks in the United States, creating the opportunity for anti-Islamic groups to perpetrate their misguided intentions that usually make things worse rather than better.

This technology-assisted contact between Muslims and non-Muslims brought itself with both negative and positive elements; the positive elements are that both Muslims and non-Muslims of today live at a golden time when, because of the Information Age Technology, they can easily have unlimited access to learning about each other´s life values in order to reach honest understanding that can finally pave the way for peaceful co-existence; the negative elements are the risk that this very Information Age Technology that would facilitate truth searching could be used or is being used right now for hatred and propaganda purposes, which can widen the everyday social and political wounds that never heal but get worse on daily basis between the Muslims everywhere and the non-Muslims of the West.

At this context of the Information Age Technology, no matter what side, group or argument you belong to or what ideology you believe in, honest dialogue and truth searching research are the only answers to the seemingly unmovable obstacles that separate the Muslim world and the West; the extremes and the moderates of both the Muslim world and the Western world should acknowledge that propaganda, hatred and violence will never have clear winners or achieve anything positive other than prolonging destruction and mistrust; this will only create more losers who are blind to the two correct highways to a beautiful world, which are peaceful co-existence and productive cooperation; this planet belongs to every human being no matter what culture or religion, so it is our collective responsibility as wise human beings to preserve it for our future children to inherit a destruction-free world from us, a world that constantly enjoys collective harmony between the human race.

Ahmed Said is a writer and a frequent blogger. He can be reached at shactiro@hotmail.com

shanta @ 12/22/2009 6:22 PM EST  Gacaliey, Do you really care what Larry David did? And how is that significant in your little world of Somalia- where Al-Haram is trying to kidnap K'Nan?

saba @ 12/22/2009 2:12 PM EST  Stickandcarrot said to me time and again........ Saba this Gacaliye is Hiding behind Somali nationalism, he is on HOL to de*f*i*le our rligion. I read Mahigan not counting him among us. The other username is more shrewd, not shrewd enough to understand that there things the MoORYAAN Somali and the most Sharif of all do not disagree and that is to stand up for the honour of the beloved Mohamad al saadiq scw. THERE ARE THINGS SOMALI JUST DO NOT DISAGREE WITH. I write it in capital, so the f**ls will learn. Go ahead and enhance your tricks, the one you have is not working on us as you can see yourselves.

saba @ 12/22/2009 1:53 PM EST  You two below, you know who you are. One of you,if not both is AYOUB the Habashi man on HOL. You are du*m*b and i show you how in capital letters, because you are really re*t*ards. Pretending to be a Somali has it's own REQUIREMENTS. One of which is, you would have first said something about the article and would have shown some agitation at least to those whom the writer of the article is addressing, those who always try to d*f*i*le prophet Mohamad (pbuh). But you haven't, have you?? You are agitated by those who are defending the most SOLID CHARECTER- ever walked on earth, Mohamad al-amiin SCW. What does that tell you f**l*s. I for one, it reminds me HOW CORRECT usernames STICKANDCARROT and MAHIIGAAN were on you. I don't sense Muslims or Somalis responding as you both did below. Sorry.

shanta @ 12/22/2009 7:12 AM EST  Gacaliye, Go Japan Go, Nobles! Down Somalia Down, Nomads!

Gacaliye@ @ 12/21/2009 9:30 PM EST  Dear Saba, we Somalis don't care about the rift betwen your arab pedos and Jewsish k"llers.