~~~ Arrogant Ignorance ~~~ Do we know enough about the rest of the world to have the effects and influence we do- FOCUS: ISLAM & THE MIDDLE EAST

Every candidate worth voting for, or commentator worth listening to, should be able to answer at least 4 of these questions without a second thought, without a call out or teleprompter or ear piece.

If they can't- they don't deserve to be voted for or listened to.

(Yes, I do think we'd be better off as a country were all Americans to know these... I think most of the rest of the world knows at least this much about us after all... but lets start with the people who send our money to foreign despots, our troops to foreign lands.)

The answers are linked. (Yes, I know, this was a short sabbatical, but its the longest I've gone without blogging in months probably, and I did a lot of Spanish study today, so this is my reward.)

1. Who was Averroes?
   
2. Describe the difference between Shiite Islam & Sunni Islam.
1. When and why did the schism occur?
2. What are the major theological differences?
3. What are the major practical differences?
3. What is the most populace Moslem country (in terms of sheer numbers?)
4. The Kabaah:
1. What is it?
2. Where is it?
3. What is its significance?
5. What is the official English translation of the Qur'an for most Muslims?
   
6. Who are the People of the Book?

Only one of those requires an answer of more than a few words, and one other could be construed as a trick question, but all deal with the most BASIC of matters regarding Islam. To be involved with the Middle East without at least this much knowledge is as foolhardy and dangerous as walking out on a frozen lake without knowing how thick the ice is.

But we've been doing so as a nation for years, haven't we?

• We go charging off into countries whose names we can barely pronounce,
• whose history we do not know,
• whose culture and people we do not respect.

I'm not just talking about our military expeditions... we send our relief agencies, engineers, agriculture experts, etc. off to the four corners of the globe with the same arrogant ignorance.

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If knowledge is power, then we are the weaklings of the world

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PS: If any of our many loyal readers are followers of the Way of Islam, I should be very pleased to know what YOU consider the basic facts about your Faith and its history which all Americans and our leaders should know. I selected these six items as very elemental things... on the order of "Who was the first President of the United States" or "From which empire did the U.S. break away"... but I'd be quite interested to know what things YOU wish more Americans knew about YOUR faith and history!