Thursday, June 01, 2006

"The Missionary Position" (thanks to many). I dont know this author. This is a very effective review, but the tone is defensive in that she goes out of her way to not offend the two authors in question, and she goes out of her way to equate Western wars with Muslim fundamentalist death threats against the authors. But who are the Muslim fundamentalists who are threatening those two authors? I read and follow the most fanatical groups, and I never heard or read any of the two names mentioned? Muslims, and even Muslim fundamentalists, don't know who those two are. I guarantee you. Should we take Manji's claims at face value? After all, the reviewer here innocently retells the story of how Manji attended an Islamic "madrasaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa" in VANCOUVER, Canada. Oh, and how she suffered at the Madraaaaaaasaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa. But I would not expect the Nation magazine to print anything radical. It is not radical magazine, let us face it. So this is a very good, moderate critique of the two books. But if this a book by, say, David Horowitz, the Nation would make sure to publish a most blasting and radical review. Not in the case of the Middle East. Finally, the author seems more aware of Muslim writers in translation: when she mentioned the free thinking Muslim Arab writers, she left out many. Way too many.