9-11 on the web

I normally hate copying whole articles into posts. However, a really good piece appeared in the LA Times by Muslim academic about what it means to teach about Islam in a post-9/11 world. Unfortunately, the piece is no longer available on-line. The complete text of the article appears below the fold.

‘Stealth Jihad’ Conveys Paranoia – Newsweek. Also, simply put, foreign words freak people out. “Jihad” and “Sharia” reinforce the sense among Americans that Muslims in general have an unfathomable world view. During World War II, formerly obscure words like “hara-kiri” and “kamikaze,” which suggested the “warlike ferocity” of the Japanese, became common parlance, Nunberg says. “There was this sense of being confronted with this hostile, alien culture.” The Japanese were “literally demonized,” he says.

As many of you have now heard, there were attempted bombings in London and Glasgow Airport. BBC round-up. In case we needed further proof that terrorists are idiots, these guys are doctors who apparently don’t know basic chemistry or physics, so the whole thing failed, thankfully. What have learned from this experience: Doctors are not necessarily smart people. Terrorists are stupid. Doctors who are terrorists are definitely not smart people. For brown children everywhere who are pressured into being doctors, you can now tell your parents with a straight face, doctors are stupid and people fear them. No prestige, no…