Working with secular and liberal Muslims and "ex-Muslims" who are still connected to the culture to push Islam toward a more progressive direction
I know I'm being very foolish to put my foot in this...but...
I think that Sam Harris, Bill M and even Space have a point that keeps getting shrugged off as being a racist or a bigot. People tend to quickly respond, but don't really address the issue they are trying to bring up and discuss seriously. (unlike Donald who is not trying to talk seriously about the issue)
I'm extremely liberal and Human Rights, Women's Rights and Freedom to practice your own religion are important to me.
These are things I really stand for and vehemently defend...might even don a army uniform to defend them (total pacifist though...so don't think they'd have me)
But there is a hard line of the Muslim world that believe these things are totally acceptable:
Genital Mutilation
Honor Killings
Forced marriage
Apostasy
People of Religion running courts and making decisions on someone's life on a book that is centauries old
Death penalties for Art or Sexual preference
I don't think you can have it both ways
I don't believe in freedom in religion if the religion holds those things as tenants
That we can happily look at those serious offenses and shrug them off...is being ignorant
and the Politically Correct crowd will not even let us have the converstaion