Just like there are different kinds of Christianity there are different kinds of Islam. Some are more compatible with liberalism than others. It also depends on what you call liberalism. In the US, Republicans are thought of as Conservatives and Democrats are thought of as Liberals. However, in Europe both our Democrats and our Republicans are conservative. By the standards of the middle east, both are liberal.

Much of the conflict between the US and the Middle East stems from American foreign policy and is not because Islam and Liberalism are incompatible. For instance, the US helped to establish the nation of Israel in the late 1940's, supports Israel in all its conflicts, and is unmoved by the plight of the Palestinians. The US overthrew the Democratic Government of Iran in the 1950's to stop the Iranians from nationalizing their oil fields. The US then set up a pro-western dictator called the Shaw so the US could get lots of cheap oil. In the 1970's, the Shaw was overthrown and the present Anti-American government of Iran came to power. In the 1980's, the US allied with Saddam Hussein and sold him the weapons he used against the Kurds.

joshuwahr: 1 year ago

I accept every one of the points you've raised. I'll add the US has further acted against its own stated principals of liberalism in supporting authoritarian dictatorial regimes in Egypt (a la Hosni Mubarak), Bahrain (for whom we have shown little support in their political movement) and Saudi Arabia (where to start with that one?).
I understand these points (and am enraged by them), but the spirit of the question was raised more along the lines of your first paragraph. How do these ideas differ on the matters of principle? This is not easy given the tremendous variation in the schools of thought for each of these terms.
I should perhaps narrow my terms a bit. I'll post more response later.

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joshuwahr: 1 year ago

I'll try to narrow this a bit by narrow the discussion to a single country. I am thinking of the current situation in Egypt as an example. There is some tension between the members of the Salafi political cohort and the more liberal political parties in this country.
What I see at stake is the role of secularism (separation of mosque from state in this case) and the rights of women. In the latter case, I do not see the Salafis in favor of a liberalized women's movement, for example.
Again, it is nearly impossible to isolate principles from practice, but it appears to an outsider that there is a negative correlation between literalist Islamic theology and the Egyptian standard of liberalism/secularism.
Any thing to add here?

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I have to be honest I dont know much about Islam but for most people religion has a lot to do with were they stand politically. why put a label on your self politically its ok to like a little of what everyone is saying. just vote for the guy you think is feeding you less B.S. With that being said you shouldn't let anyone come between you and whoever you call god. i suggest speaking with your religious leader and getting there thoughts on the matter.