Muslim blames American culture for beheading

Last month, in Buffalo, Muzzammil Hassan apparently beheaded his wife days after she asked him for a divorce. The irony was that Hassan founded a TV network intended to counter Muslim stereotypes.

Today, a Muslim writer writes an apologia for Islam in the wake of that event, saying that the Quran does not support such actions as "honor killings" and female genital mutilation.

His last paragraphs, however, reveal more about Islamic culture and thinking than he perhaps intended:

So we can only feel betrayed by this supposedly well-educated, successful Muslim American businessman, who even bought a TV station for dakwah [outreach] purposes. We are betrayed because he reverted to such colossally barbaric behaviour — behaviour that discredits everything he stood and worked for.

In our moments alone, we too may ask, "How can any Muslim really be trusted, if, living in a so-called civilised country like the US, he remains capable of murdering his own wife?"

A prominent Malaysian remarked that in the US these days, it seems that killing people has become almost as casual as having a cup of coffee. And so perhaps Muslims in these Western countries become corrupted by Western values and behaviour, rather than the other way around.

And Allah knows best.

Notice that this Muslim does not characterize the Bridges TV network's purpose as being to defend Muslims from stereotypes, but as an outreach tool to convert Americans to Islam.

He has a feeling of betrayal and a moment of self doubt - can it be that perhaps Muslims are inherently violent and unstable?

But then he realizes the answer - no, it is not Islamic culture that causes a Muslim man to behead his wife - but Western values! Muslims are peaceful, and the violent ones must have become evil because of Western influence!

Now he can sleep well at night, secure in the knowledge that there is no need for introspection over such a gruesome, medieval crime. Islam is clean of corruption, and the only evil is the West. Everything makes sense again.

And Allah knows best.

One can only wonder what this writer would say about this woman in England who converted to Christianity and whose imam father came after her with an axe...