MetaFilter posts tagged with Muslims and MiddleEast

The Wall

ludwig_van — Sun, 16 Dec 2007 19:43:55 -0800

Israel vs. Palestine: Against the Wall is a six-part series on VBS.tv about the separation wall which divides Israel from the West Bank. Previously on Metafilter. Some more background on the Second Intifada.

Muslim Refusenik

jenleigh — Tue, 24 May 2005 07:47:19 -0800

Irshad Manji, self-described "Muslim Refusenik", urges moderation after the Newsweek-Quran scandal. Earlier this month, Manji launched a public campaign for Ijtihad ("independent thinking") with a claim for Islamic pluralism and "the aim of setting up a foundation for young, reform-minded Muslims to explore and challenge their faith."

semmi — Thu, 15 Aug 2002 18:08:46 -0800

Demograhics weighed. More flavor into the melting pot, or more strife as another ethnicity to claim the turf for themselves?

boltman — Sat, 06 Apr 2002 11:19:59 -0800

Who started the crusades? Catholic historian Thomas Madden argues that the crusades "were not the brainchild of an ambitious pope or rapacious knights but a response to more than four centuries of conquests in which Muslims had already captured two-thirds of the old Christian world." Given all the talk about the crusades in the wake of 9-11, an accurate understanding of the history seems important. But is this accurate or just Catholic revisionism?

cell divide — Tue, 20 Nov 2001 10:58:28 -0800

It's the Democracy, Stupid Quick hit from Middle East expert Thomas Friedman on why democracy matters in the Middle East, and by extension why democracy-building is one of the US's best weapons there. Starts out with a news quiz: "Name the second-largest Muslim community in the world. Iran? Wrong. Pakistan? Wrong. Saudi Arabia? Wrong." (NYT link)

Postroad — Wed, 19 Sep 2001 11:22:27 -0800

Israel is not the real issue the piece speaks for itself. Many have blamed our foreign policy, our support of Israel, our bombing of Iraq. This view sees a different issue and confrontation.