<p>I thought this was a very interesting and slightly depressing read. It seems as though my generation is going to be as inept at fighting global terrorism as the current generation in power is. </p>
<p>Anyway, one thing I found interesting was the idea at the end that, “American elites still nurture a certainty that they are on the side of perfect right against perfect wrong in their struggle with Muslim militancy.” This reminds me of how Americans have been rather slow in adopting/accepting the idea of moral relativism.</p>
<p>That auditorium sits several hundred people. I don’t trust journalists to give more than a very superficial account of important issues, including what students are truly learning. I would expect to judge what students have been learning and thinking from their written work.</p>
<p>How many of the 12,000 armed forces personnel discharged under “don’t ask, don’t tell” were valuable Arabic speakers? I have read that the percentage is quite high.</p>
<p>Just one little way we are losing the intelligence war.</p>
You must be mistaken. Remember, Ahmadinejad told us that there are no homosexuals in Iran.</p>
<p>
Thank God we haven’t adopted moral relativism as a lens through which to view the world. Most Americans are not fans of beheadings, and I’m not real eager to have Sharia law practiced in the West.</p>
<p>Not what I was getting at at all. I was merely saying that many Americans have a hard time understanding that things are as simple as “black and white;” “right or wrong;” “with us or against us;” etc.</p>
<p>It most certainly is not all black and white. Sharia banking services are now offered by four top tier institutions in the U.S., and these services are viewed favorably by the specific communities of interest involved.</p>
<p>Sharia law and sharia banking are very different things. The banks LTS refers to are not practicing sharia law;</p>
<p>Islamic banking refers to a system of banking or banking activity that is consistent with Islamic law (Sharia) principles and guided by Islamic economics. In particular, Islamic law prohibits usury, the collection and payment of interest, also commonly called riba in Islamic discourse. In addition, Islamic law prohibits investing in businesses that are considered unlawful, or haraam (such as businesses that sell alcohol or pork, or businesses that produce media such as gossip columns or pornography, which are contrary to Islamic values). In the late 20th century, a number of Islamic banks were created, to cater to this particular banking market.
[Islamic</a> banking - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islamic_banking]Islamic”>Islamic banking and finance - Wikipedia)</p>