Comments on: Madame President

By: MorganWells

MorganWells — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Ingrid Mattson is an inspiration to women, both Muslim and non-Muslim. Right on, GOOD.

By: sandedande

sandedande — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

I wish Ingrid Mattson all the luck in the world. She’ll need it. After going from Catholicism (the frying pan) to Islam (the fire) as a woman in this society, she has her work cut out for her as she battles one of the world’s most oppressive religions for women followers.

By: Domenico

Domenico — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

A system of belief that forbids women to show their hair and dress primarily in black is a belief system that most intelligent women would find repugnant. A liberal democracy and not a conservative (some would say repressive) theocracy is the means to ensuring the rights and privileges of women. That is a proven fact. Therefore, I cannot agree that Ingrid Mattson is an inspiration to most women, certainly not to non-Muslim women.

By: shoegazer

shoegazer — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Dear Sandedande, Islam is not "oppressive" against it's women followers. I mean to make no judgement on you, and with all respect I mention that studying Islam purely objectively (studying the Qur'an-- it's not difficult to do) will show you a light in which both men and women have equal laws. Perhaps you'll mention the hijab. See, Islam teaches that women should be modest. And, from purely an objective viewpoint, look at the common dress in the West and in the East. There is no arguing, women dress more modest in the East. Perhaps you'll say that women are forced to wear hijab. True, some individuals take a theology too far and begin to "innovate" Islam with their own ideas (which is against the teachings of Islam). However, if you give me that example, of women being forced to wear the hijab, I must make like Ingrid Mattson and tell you of women who, in the name of Islam take on the hijab (hijab isn't the only mode of being modest-- the hijab was, from what I hear, a social trend back in the day)

Muslims are taught that Islam will never be corrupt, however there will be transgressors who provide only lip service to Islam and try to seek power from it-- this is universal, not unique to Islam, but to every religion, theology, or political belief. In the article itself, the authors mention: "she's concerned about how the events of 9/11 have been exploited to cast suspicion on all Muslims. She points out that while some extremist groups claim justification for their acts in the tenets of Islam, "Muslims in Afghanistan, Iraq, and elsewhere who denounce those acts do so in the name of Islam as well". The human beings who flew airplanes into the WTC were anything BUT muslim. There is no such term as Islamic Extremism, only Extremism.

What Ingrid Mattson is doing is great. She's fighting conservative extremism.

The is what Islam needs in parts of the world where the true understanding of it's nature is prevented due to media portrayal. For example, I live in Washington D.C., every week on the news, there is rather sickening tale of what a boyfriend has done to his girlfriend, etc. However, this is hardly in the portrayal of America, as it should be. Why? Because this is not what America's true ideolgy is based on. Individuals who happen to be American can also become extreme, seeking power over another.

We should remain humble. God bless...

By: acook

acook — Wed, 30 Nov -0001 00:00:00 +0000

Even as an agnostic, I wholeheartedly support Mattson’s efforts to moderate Islam teachings and others’ opinions on them. Because, especially in the West, we are not taught other religions beside our own or any other cultural perspectives until we are older (college, i suppose), our opinions of other “outsider” religions have already been formed. Hopefully, she will rally more support and further acknowledgment of the true Islam, the religion that doesn’t support extremism.