For the past two and a half years, Sam Harris and Glenn Greenwald have been embroiled in a bitter debate about the nature of contemporary Islam. The exchange has become so acrimonious – and seemingly intractable – that fans of both writers are calling for a "ceasefire."
Not me. I agree with Steven Pinker, who thinks the reformation of Islam may prove to be "the most important issue in political ideology of the twenty-first century." This is no time to silence the guns.
Harris maintains that Islam is uniquely dangerous. Its doctrines of martyrdom, jihad, and apostasy offer explicit warrants for violence and sectarianism. Its strident prohibitions on blasphemy authorize the suppression of speech. Its texts about the inferiority of women and homosexuals continue to license rampant misogyny, abuse, and bigotry in Muslim countries. [The News Hub] Read more
