A reader by the name of “Concerned” comments:
I’m not sure what these anti-McCain and Palin missives have to do with the stated mission of your website which is to discuss issues surrounding Muslims and Islam
I think it’s a fair enough question. Part of the answer lies in the origins of this blog, which is part of the post-9/11 narrative in this country and coincided with the rise of Gulf War II rhetoric. Inevitably, the discussions on this blog focused on US foreign policy, which is inherently tied to politics. The pattern was set.
Second, the US is part of the Muslim world. It has as many, if not more than, Muslims as Jordan. I am part of that community. I am Muslim and I am American. This country is the part of the Muslim world with which I am most familiar.
If I rail against Mubarak for a being a dictator, or OBL for perverting the message of Islam, no one seems to care. However, if my vision of Muslims and the Muslim world does include the US. The Republican Party is bad for America. The Republican Party makes us less secure as Americans. The Republican Party is interested in instigating war with Muslim majority countries and their partisans are virulently Islamophobic. To me, railing against the depravity of the Republican Party is a way to make sure America is safer and that the interests of world peace are served.
So, thank you for your concern. I hope you understand. If you don’t, and you don’t want to come back, I’m sorry. If you don’t, but you’re going to hang around because of the other stuff, thank you. If you do understand, I’m glad you listened.
I love your point that the US is part of the Muslim world. Of course it is — though that’s not a phrase I hear in public discourse, so I’m glad to be reminded of it here.