'We care because we are a part of this community'
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SEATTLE -- New death threats from Al_Qaida and violent protests around the world -- rage over an anti-Muslim video produced by a California man is growing. Anti-American protests have broken out in 30 countries and Saturday afternoon, the U.S. State Department issued a warning advising against travel to Tunisia and Sudan.
But in Seattle, Muslim groups are pleading for an end to the violence.
"We care because we are part of this community," said Muslim Community Leader Alaa Badr.
Local Muslim leaders and their families were standing up Saturday to say those protestors do not represent the Islam they practice.
"We care because we want people to understand our point of view about what's going on," Badr said.
They condemn the extremists in Libya accused of murdering U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans.
"We care because our hearts cry out for the families of those killed in the past few days," Badr said.
President Obama has ordered Marines to Libya and Yemen to protect Americans, and the military is bracing for more attacks on U.S. facilities and more violent protests.
Local Muslims also worry about reprisals from people who make ignorant assumptions about all followers of Islam.
"It makes you feel under the spotlight, it makes you feel threatened in some ways if you can't handle it," Badr said.
So far, there have been no reports of any mistreatment or acts of hatred or violence against Muslims in Western Washingto
But in Seattle, Muslim groups are pleading for an end to the violence.
"We care because we are part of this community," said Muslim Community Leader Alaa Badr.
Local Muslim leaders and their families were standing up Saturday to say those protestors do not represent the Islam they practice.
"We care because we want people to understand our point of view about what's going on," Badr said.
They condemn the extremists in Libya accused of murdering U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans.
"We care because our hearts cry out for the families of those killed in the past few days," Badr said.
President Obama has ordered Marines to Libya and Yemen to protect Americans, and the military is bracing for more attacks on U.S. facilities and more violent protests.
Local Muslims also worry about reprisals from people who make ignorant assumptions about all followers of Islam.
"It makes you feel under the spotlight, it makes you feel threatened in some ways if you can't handle it," Badr said.
So far, there have been no reports of any mistreatment or acts of hatred or violence against Muslims in Western Washingto
strange100p..........your name says it all...................Sorry you're so easily duped!
 @catahoula Oh, and please let me know how I'm being dupedâI can't wait to hear it.
strange100p..........your name says it all...................strange!.Sorry you're so easily duped.
 @catahoula Perhaps you ought to research what a strange loop is before you turn it into an ad hominem attack.
I got no problems with any REAL people of faith anywhere. I got no problems with the most austere Amish or Mennonites, nor any problem with true dedication to Islam. In all of the major religions, though, they seem to hide behind labels like a religion of peace. And It doesn't matter to me if that means Catholics with guns, or Muslims with guns. As a nation, we never hear a word coming out of the most austere religious groups in our land, and as far as I know, they have never created any problem for this nations people. They show us without a word that a simpler life is out there for any of us, and that's a hugely powerful thing. A true religion seeks not power, but acceptance. Life is the goal, not death or money. Americans are now teachers of corruption in the eyes of the world, and no matter what we are willing to teach others about the successful predatory aspects of it, it's nothing to the true intent, which must always end in death. If America has any good intent at all towards our world, then why is it that Amish farmers are good, but Muslim farmers are not? Whether Al Qaeda has the farmer under the knife or not, that farmer's belief system is still that of a Islamic Farmer, based in philosophical teachings and long learned agrarian wisdom. We taught AQ how to corrupt a populace. We taught them the principles of guerrilla warfare. It is the minerals and oil of their land we are after, and AQ is still assisting us to those ends, because they seek power first. We showed them how it's a stupid thing not to. Proof? They don't want us out of that region, not for anything. They lose power if we pull our guys and gals out.
Do I want someone who would kill me for an insult for a neighbor?
 @Elvis The Muslims in this article are trying to be constructive. How about you follow their example.
 @strangel00p  @Elvis Do you think I am the only one interested in asking why there is not more of them?
 @Elvis Perhaps because they are frightened of the ignorance that rages around them.
No.
The Video has 8000 hits on You Tube hmmm talk about being lead by the nose!
I believe none of it because their holy book says lie to your enemies and all non muslims are their enemies.
@catahoula
Please quote where in the Holy book it says to lie to the enemy... The lie is in your ignorance, you are no better than the terrorists who follow their leaders without question. I just read the book cover to cover and could not find anywhere it says to lie to the enemy and to kill them... In fact it says, IIf anyone kills not in retaliation of murder, or (and) to spread mischief in the land- it would be as if he/she killed all human kind and if anyone saves one life, it would be as if he/she has saved the whole human kind" -Quran 5:32
The sad part is that people like you who without reading the book would say something you have heard someone else say⦠Quran is a book you need to read with the context of history and why a verse was revealed to the prophet⦠Unless you do that you will never learn. Please visit a mosque or Islamic center near you and ask someone there to help you understand so you are not labeled a âhatemongerâ.
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 @Rizwan Very well said @Rizwan , verry well said!
 @catahoula And if you're really worried about liars, look to the Republican party, whose politicians believe it's OK to lie as long as you win.
 @catahoula The R's have a lot more power in the US than Muslims, so they're more to be concerned about.
 @catahoula The xian bible is full of crap too and no one follows every word (esp. since its full of self-contradiction). Picking and choosing out of some person's holy book is silly. Look at their actions: the people in this article are acting and are calling for peace and understanding. What are your actions?
Poor folks - they have to learn from a book to lie to their enemies. Most of us are naturally equipped with an ego which tells us the same thing.
How many Muslims live in the Seattle are. Hundreds? Thousands? Yet, I count under 20 people in the picture above, including children who were probably dragged there by their parents. Not to discount the sincerity of the people in the photo, but for me , it's getting increasingly difficult to believe the few people who say Islam is really a religion of peace. Beginning to think the "extremists' far outweigh the "moderates" here.
 @SusieQ I have worked with and gotten to know a fair number of Muslims in the Seattle area and beyond. Just like people of other faiths and atheists and agnostics, most of them are great people and some are not. Sounds like you need to get out more.
 @SusieQ SusieQ I have been wondering why they stay so quiet here. The Muslim community here is not interested in making much noise about how much they like America are they? The display on my monitor is showing me the opposite of what they meant because of the small turn out.
I'm not sure that the United States will ever learn that Jeffersonian democracy is not  the highest aspiration of every human being who is born anywhere, any time.  How many disasters will it take for us to realize that the Balkan intervention in the early 1990s, which was only arguably a success, is not a template for the foreign policy of the Western democracies?
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Colonial powers sketched out arbitrary borders a century ago, trapping bitter, feuding sects and groups within the same nation. Â The result was countries for which there was a single pathway for effective governance - a tyrant willing to kill people to keep the country together. Â Saddam Hussein, Hosni Mubarak, Muammar Gadaffi and Bashar Assad all had/have one thing in common - the willingness and resources to do what it took to maintain a secular government and crush Islamist extremists.
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US foreign policy is in direct conflict with the values that Americans profess to hold. Â We have to choose between supporting the self-governance aspirations of all people, which includes militant extremists, or providing a safer world for Americans. Â It has to be one or the other. Â If it's the latter, then Gaddafi, Hussein, Assad and Mubarak were our friends. Â If it's the former, then we have to accept a world that's far more dangerous for Americans than we're used to.
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It's as simple as that.
I care. Me too.
 @HonkeyCat A duel personality consensus. Anybody else in there who opposes?
I can appreciate and respect those who try and make a stand for peace.... thank you Alaa Badr ...
Rage the mob mentality Rage after the trigger No before the trigger is pulled unless its about a movie made in California unless its porn, unless its a batman movie Rage its that part of us that's still primeval its that part of some of us that lands us in prison. Unless that rage is felt by a country(mob) mankind is screwed killing each other over the non provable existence of a deity other than eating I guess there is no other reason for living makes about as much sense as my post.
It's far simpler than that. We don't kill each other over dieties (have you seen one?). We kill each other over the belief in dieties - in other words, we kill each other because we can't stand for others not to agree with our beliefs.
 @Verticalling You can't kill an idea or a belief.
That is absolutely right.
 @Verticalling Simple seems to equal easy as in its easier to kill or destroy than it is to heal or create. Once again a trigger what a coincidence that this all started on 9/11 even more so that that some one in the U.S started it . Simple? not.Â
If it were easier to kill or destroy than to heal or create, there would be no PTSD and all the doctors and therapists would close shop and go to war.
Ban all religions; both Christians and Muslims are both a crock.Â
Religion shouldn't be banned, but it should be mocked and ridiculed.
Refreshingly honest!
 @notez2cme That won't really work in the United States given that it would violate the First Amendment's Establishment Clause, which is also the portion of the First Amendment that protects you from being persecuted for believing that all religions are a crock.
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http://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/establishment_clause
@notez2cme Banning religions isn't very American, but I think we seriously need to explore freedom FROM religion so we can have an extra whammy for when people kill in the name of God.
To suggest banning religion is to lack the faith that it will die a natural death.
 @Verticalling Fight faith with faith?
 @Verticalling I think you are referring to the difference between optimism and "blind faith". You are fighting blind faith with optimism. That's a good thing.
 Not exactly. I use the term "faith" to mean that same sense one has that the sun will appear again tomorrow, without our interference. It is a faith which requires no effort or thought (those exist in the absence of faith). By contrast, the "faith" religion speaks of - and which is actually its antithesis- is the result of doubt. None of this has anything to do with "peace" - which is a purely fantasy-based concept, and the result of wishful thinking (which is what all beliefs are). There will never be peace, but there will always be the desire for it since its roots are the biological drive for homeostasis - or what scientists refer to as "dynamic equilibrium" - which in truth is an oxymoronic term that will never exist in reality.
 @notez2cme If you truly feel that way, don't let the door hit you in the ass as you leave this country. One of the freedoms we enjoy here, one that I served my country to defend, is freedom of religion.
 @Gino If your religion is worth killing for; please start with yourself :)
If you think this country has a door, you need to get out of your house more often.
The âselfâ is the epitome of arrogance. Lets see if âyouâ can do any of the following : Stop thinking. Stop experiencing sadness forever. Make your heart stop beating (by sending a command). Control your digestion. Pick which cells are going to be broken down by enzymes. Regulate the electrical signals sent to the brain. Control the pace at which your hair grows. Close the valves in your veins as blood flows through. Now control all the skepticism and doubting that might arise from reading this post. Go ahead and control every single thought and emotion in this moment. What else can âyouâ do ? In fact, what can the âselfâ actually do ? Nothing. Look at how the âyouâ isnât really in charge. Thereâs just a thought that claims it is running the show. Really, just look and see. âYouâ donât control or create any of these processes. âYouâ are not the cause of these processes. âYouâ donât do anything at all. There is no âyouâ. The âselfâ is just a concept attached to what is. It is the tag that claims to create and control what is already there. The âselfâ is an illusion. It is an incredibly arrogant illusion. Look and see.
Actually, "you" do ALL of those things. You just have no idea where the "you" that does all those things is. That's because the mind is totally blocking your view.
 @alildifferent The "self" exists, but not to control. The "self" exists if one has self-awareness -- which one has if one is conscious. The self also exists with relation to "free will" Piteous as human thoughts may be compared to those you express, man is capable of choosing to do one thing as opposed to another. However you want to define or limit it, it is our "selfs" which determine to do one thing or the other, and those choices contribute toward determining our human history.
 @felines99  @alildifferent A western way of looking at things. But, in much of the Islamic world, there is a very different view of self and free will.
http://gatesofvienna.blogspot.com/2010/11/muslim-crime-in-uk-part-3.html
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 @RN1  @felines99 I wish we could edit with Livefyre, too, but overall I prefer it to the former service. :)
 @felines99 You sounded like you were dismissing the information solely because of the location, and you didn't address in in either way.
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The fact that some think they are Allah's chosen to work his will here on Earth, and try to change things, doesn't in any way change the fact that for MANY of them the reason they are so tribal and anti-science and anti-Jew and so pro-conspiracy is because they don't view themselves as private actors responsible for their own action, it's always the fault of others, or the blessings of Allah, that control their lives. Not all, most certainly, but many more than enough to cause huge problems for the rest of the world.
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gah, I hate this new editor system. It displays and tracks threading poorly, doesn't allow edits, and doesn't do spelling corrections. Bleg.
The "western way" is the where It's at, like it or not.
 @RN1  @felines99  @alildifferent I was pointing out something about your source, which is a valid thing to do. You are assuming the rest -- i.e., that I did not read about the "locus of control" and that I am "condemning" what he wrote. You are also assuming, and incorrectly, that I "may not like what the psychologist says". You need to improve your reading comprehension.
 @felines99  @alildifferent You should be aware that the write-up by the psychologist is also reprinted elsewhere, and I've not seen anything that repudiates his basic findings. You should read it, and try to understand the intellectual geekery about "locus of control" etc, rather than condemning the source (just happened to be the first link I found, after remembering it from reading the blurb in a psych journal a while back).
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Also, I hope you get the reference to the "gates of Vienna" where the Muslim invasion of Europe was stopped.
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The fact that you may not like what the psychologist says doesn't negate the fact that his observations appear sound. If you think they are not, and can find a robust rebuttal of his paper, I'd be happy to read it.
 @RN1  @alildifferent The behavior of Muslims argues against the notion that Muslims do not believe that they possess free will. Consider 9/ll. That happened because a number of Muslims believed that they COULD alter the course of human events. It took an immense amount of planning to bring 9/ll about.Â
 @RN1  @felines99  @alildifferent You need to be aware that the website which you referred me to, gatesofvienna.blogspot.com, is a far-right, Islamaphobic source. For example, even the Anti-Defamation League of the B'nai Brith condemns it, which is unusual since the website is pro-Israeli. They accuse Gates of Vienna of "promoting a conspiratorial anti-Muslim agenda under the guise of fighting radical Islam."
"determining our human history."
That almost makes sense, especially in light of the fact that history doesn't exist except in our memory, which tends to warp over time.
 @alildifferent I think you could have left it at the first sentence.
@fyrefawx I get carried away. :)
@fyrefawx It's all good my friend.
 @alildifferent  @fyrefawx Yeah, me too...sometimes I even forget the point I was trying to make, if any.  ;)