By John Williams, Frisco, Texas
I enjoy reading your site immensely and I think that I and most Americans want only the best for the people of Pakistan and Afghanistan. Christians helping guard mosques, escorting Muslims to mosque, etc., are indeed the types of charity and caring that should take place between our two cultures and religions.
However, I do not see an effort on the part of those Muslims in America to reach out to those in their former homelands to stem the tide of misinformation that has flooded Pakistan and Afghanistan. Are there arenas where Pakistani-Americans can air their views (such as Letters to the Editor) in Pakistan? If not, do most not have relatives who can start a quiet counter-campaign to ridiculous claims accepted in whole from the Taliban and widely published in Pakistan?
I think that sometimes our government tries to communicate with people on a level which is beyond their comprehension. The propaganda from the Taliban seems simple and repetitive while our counters are filled with high ideals that most in that region have never experienced and find incomprehensible.
I will be blunt. While the vast majority of Americans regret civilian or “collateral” damage, in my, and most Americans’ (including Arab-Americans) opinion I’ve spoken with, this is an “us or them” scenario. If 10 or 10,000 or 100,000 unintended civilian deaths are required to win the war, then we will be steadfast in our resolve. We are determined that our children and grandchildren WILL NOT live under the scourge of terrorism. This message needs to be sent loud and clear to those countries and their peoples who harbor and succor terrorists.
Thanks for any information and I will continue to visit your site. It has given me great insight and I think all Americans - Muslim, Jew, Protestant, and Catholic alike - are on the same page. But we need Arab Americans and American Muslims to step up to the plate and take responsibility for winning the war of words because frankly, the rest of us, even our leaders, are ill-prepared to deal with the cultures we have too long ignored.