David Horowitz's Frontpagemag.com has a three-part symposium on Islam. I read part one a couple of days ago, and just finished parts two and three.

The symposium is interesting not only for what it tells us about Islam, but what its defenders have to say when challenged. The two Islamic experts start out with ad hominem attacks on their opponents, then eventually resort to saying that Western society has problems too.

For example, from Part 2:

Gentlemen, if today’s terrorism is not an outgrowth of Islam and if it gives Islam a "bad name", and therefore even defames Islam, why isn’t the outcry from the Muslim world much more vehement? Where are all of the mass demonstrations of angry Muslims shouting and denouncing Bin Laden for slandering Islam?

As'ad AbuKhalil: Why should Arabs and Muslims always dance to US tunes? So Arabs and Muslims are only humans if they respond to US orders for demonstrations only on issues that the US decides on? In the Middle East, people widely and uniformly condemn the Sep. 11 attacks, so they do not feel the need to keep reiterating their stance to appease anti-Muslim bigots like Falwell, Robertson, and F. Graham.

For those of you who live in California, you'll be happy to know that AbuKhalil is supported by your taxpayer dollars. He's a political science professor at CSU Stanislaus.

Islam needs better spokesmen (I'd say spokespeople, but women aren't allowed) if they're going to convince the rest of the world that they are really a religion of peace.

Oh, and things like this don't help the case.