Hey, when we came up with the idea of freedom of religion here a couple of hundred years ago, it wasn't a piece of cake either. Our European ancestors had a tradition of combining religion and government.

And the First Amendment didn't make everything instantly wonderful in America either. Religious persecutions happened way too often. Remember the Mormons? And even without violence, many of the prejudices are still there. I was alive when people were worried about having a Catholic president. Anti-Semitism is still a big problem in some areas. And hey, some people have a problem with the President just being Christian. ;)

But none of these are now official government policies. They are aberrations in our country, and treated as such. We are still making progress even now. Again, in my lifetime the idea of a Catholic president was worrisome to many. Now, the idea of Joseph Lieberman as president doesn't even raise an eyebrow, except with the pea-brained crackpot set. Imagine running a Jewish candidate in 1960.

Hundreds of years ago, Christianity was often spread by the sword. Wars were fought over religious issues, and the Church was more powerful in national governments than many kings. Christian sects did many terrible things.

The Christian religion largely outgrew all that. There was no huge change all at once, but changes bit by bit over many years in different nations. There is absolutely no reason the Muslim religion can't do the same. I would say that a large majority of Muslims even now feel that way.

This does not have to end up in the worst way. Be aware of the problems, but keep the crepe on the shelf.