Critic of Islam a beacon of reason

Re A heretic’s take on the future of Islam, May 16 It is gratifying to see the Star give space to Ayaan Hirsi Ali and her challenge to the Muslim community to modernize its religion. Mitch Potter noted the extensive security measures paid for by her publisher to correctly identify him as a legitimate interviewer.

The history behind that included the murder of a filmmaker she was working with in Holland and that country’s inability to adequately protect her from religious extremist threats even though she was an elected member of parliament. Since Holland could not protect her as an advocate for women’s rights in the Muslim community, she opted to move to the U.S.

Unfortunately even there her courageous expression of ideas still puts her life in danger. I am not aware of any contemporary voices challenging Christianity’s philosophies being under a similar threat in the United States or Canada and that speaks volumes about the difference in attitudes.

I’ve heard people say they are tired of hearing a Pew Research poll that found that a majority of Muslims support the death penalty for those who leave Islam in countries like Egypt and Pakistan. Interestingly we are told in the Star’s World section that this same research centre has found that 7 per cent of Christians in the United States have become apostates in the last eight years. I know my wife, devout Christian that she is, does not want those people executed and I feel safe expressing my atheistic mindset in my neighbourhood, province and country.

Is Ayaan Hirsi Ali an Islamophobe? Mitch Potter did Ayaan a service by not asking softball questions and Ayaan did the Muslim religion a service by voicing a coherent position on the fundamental differences between our views on the free expression of ideas and the rights of women and the harsh counter realities in countries like Saudi Arabia as well as with our favourite bogeyman community, ISIS.

This lady is a beacon for reason and the tolerance of ideas. Russell Pangborn, Keswick, Ont.