JamaicanRUM, I'm not going to answer your points line by line. You make gross generalisations such as "the % that sympathizes with the extremists is pretty high". You continue to raise points highlighting extreme examples from Islam, and then try to tie it back to the mainstream with statements like the one I just quoted.

This is an insult to the mainstream followers of Islam, they are not mostly sympathisers for extreme or violent behaviour. Are the people of Iraq mostly terrorists, or sympathise with the blood shed? I doubt it, but it would be easy to make such a generalisation.

You yourself have openly stated that as an atheist you oppose all religions, so I don't think we will be able to have a fruitful discussion about what is and isn't Islam. Sorry - I just don't think there's much more mileage in us exploring this angle, especially since you seem unable to separate the extreme versions of Islam from the mainstream. Unfortunately for those who want to put a small tower on the top of their building, you aren't alone in your opinions - a fact which I cannot deny, but disappoints me somewhat.

I think the vast majority of reasonable people (at least our forum members) realise that the percentage of Muslims who sympathise with extremism is not high. They can make that distinction. I am afraid however that as we continue to persecute and exclude mainstream muslims that some (I said some, not most) may start to become disillusioned and become more susceptible to the teachings of the more extreme forms.

It is extremism that we must oppose, not the building of a tower over a building where peaceful people worship.

Instead I'm going to take a slightly different direction and tell a story with photos. In my next post...