My Take: Muslims should stop apologizing for 9/11

[rug]

New York (CNN) – As a Muslim, I’m sick of people asking me how I feel about 9/11. What do you want me to say, seriously?

Do you want me to say, “It was a great plan, mwahahaha!” before I fly off on a magic carpet?

I was born and raised in this country and was just as shocked as everyone else to learn there were people on this earth so vile as to commit such a horrific attack - or to even think about doing it.

But I didn’t do it. Neither did 99.999999999 percent of the roughly 1.5 billion people in the world who also call themselves Muslims. So why should I or any other Muslim apologize for what happened?

http://religion.blogs.cnn.com/2011/09/07/my-take-muslims-should-stop-apologizing-about-911/?iref=allsearch

[Boojatta]

1. According to some TV broadcasts in a number of Muslim-majority countries ...

it would make no sense whatsoever to ask Muslims to apologize for the events of September 11, 2001. After all, what are the odds? How many Muslims have gained membership in The Secret International Organization of Bagel-Eating, Cosmopolitan Bankers, Judges, Lawyers, Accountants, and Psychiatrists?

(What? You didn't know that the psychiatrists were in on it? Then why did the dutiful but deceived law enforcement officers take you to the psychiatrists?)

[Kalidurga]

2. I never heard a single Christian apologize for

Timothy McVeigh, he was Catholic.

[RZM]

3. That number is nowhere near 99.9 percent

It depends on where you are and how you phrase the question. But according to this Pew data, support for suicide bombings as of 2009 was a lot more than 0.1 percent in every country polled.

http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1338/declining-muslim-support-for-bin-laden-suicide-bombing

That being said, I don't think your average person on the street should have to apologize either.

[Silent3]

5. You could probably find at least 0.1 percent of Christians in this country...

...who cheered 9/11 as a righteous expression of God's wrath.

I also agree with you and the OP that the typical Muslim has nothing to apologize for. My point is that I've gotten used to the fact that there's an awful lot of crazy out there in world, and you don't have to dig down into fractional percentage points to find it.

Maybe only fractions of a percent of the people typically carry out the worst atrocities, but it's unfortunately easy to find at least single-digit percentage moral support for a lot of vile things. When we see how easily war and disaster can bring out the worst (along with the best) in people, I think we have to admit that dark impulses aren't all that far below the surface in many of us.

[dmallind]

4. Never expected them to

Never expect Christians, Hindus, Sikhs and Buddhists to apologize for the acts of terrorism done by others of their faith in the name of their faith either.

I DO expect them to seek to correct those within their faith who would suggrest that terrorism, or violence or oppression, are appropriate actions to take in the name of their faith though.

Don't apologize to me because your co-religionist planted a bomb or shot a doctor or executed a rape victim or beat a child to death for God. Tell your co-religionists who suggest such things in the name of religion that they are wrong BEFORE they do them.

[Deep13]

6. Wasn't aware any where.

I don't expect anyone to apologize for anything he or she did not do. You don't need to apologize for 9/11 and I don't need to apologize for enslaving black people or killing Native Americans for the simple reason that neither of us had anything to do with any of those things.

[AverageJoe90]

7. I agree. 90% of Muslims are decent people. Blaming all of them......

.....for the actions & beliefs of the 0.01% of wannabe terrorists or 9.9% of jerks, bigots, etc. is unacceptable and shouldn't be tolerated.

Same for Christians. Should the 85% of decent Christians be blamed for the actions, beliefs, etc. 0.1% of hardcore wannabe murderers, genocidalists, etc. or 14.9% of other screwed up people?
Or Jews. Could blaming the actions & beliefs of the 6% of jerks, morons, etc. on the 94% of decent people be acceptable either. No!

My point is, negative generalizations of any group are simply unacceptable. I'm sure that 99.9% of you will agree with that.