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Muslims Protesting Al Qaeda

By stcynic on November 8, 2005.

This blog is reporting on a massive protest of 150,000 Muslims in Morocco on Sunday, gathered to protest against Al Qaeda and their decision to murder two Moroccan relief workers in Iraq. This is very important and we need more of this. I firmly believe that the vast, vast majority of Muslims are good and decent people who are appalled by the actions of Bin Laden and his fellow travelers. But in many communities, they may be cowed by fear into not speaking out. The single most important thing that can happen within the Muslim world, I think, is for moderate, civilized Muslims to begin to come together in this kind of demonstration of numbers. It will make people feel safer in speaking out against the extremists in their midst, and even to inform on them.

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While I don't disagree with the principle, and it is indeed heartening news, bear in mind that in most Muslim countries mass demonstrations are not exactly popular with the authorities. On the other hand, since Al Qaeda and its affiliate's principal aim is the overthrow of those authorities, they might cut some slack in this case, a la China and the Japanese war memorial scandal.

By Ginger Yellow (not verified) on 08 Nov 2005 #permalink

Morocco wants to have good relations with Spain for at least for economic reasons.

Don't forget it was a few al-Qaeda radicals out of Morocco that committed the bombings in the Madrid subway a few months ago. I would suspect, but cannot prove, that the Moroccan regime has been trying to root out al-Qaeda cells in Morocco ever since the Madrid subway bombing.

This is good, no matter what the underlying motives in terms of economics or whatnot. We need more of that here in the US in some ways as in counter protests to our own nation's wacko-extremists. I was happy to read today that the National Evangelical Assocation is supporting the National Council of Churches protest of the IRS's attack on a "relatively" liberal Episcopalian church in Pasadena. While the motives of the evangelicals might be to free up their own desires to campaign, this alliance to protect legal and appropriate free speech is heartening.

Maybe someday, if we're lucky, we'll see moderate Christians in America organizing to protest the extremist freaks in their midst.

Of course, I won't hold my breath.