[MMMMMM]

Your diatribe aside, Chris, it is a fact that Mohammad and his armies, and later Muslim armies, spread Islam BY THE SWORD, and took entire regions under their totalitarian control via sheer military conquest coupled with institutionalized politico-religio-fascisim.

Do you think that is "OK", or that the Westerners had no business eventually driving back the Muslim conquistadores, and their totalitarian system? Northern Africa, parts of Spain, and other regions, including the area around Jerusalem, had been systematically put to the sword and conquered by Mohammad's armies and followers. Mohammed promised his warriors booty in this world and paradise in the next. Well, at least they got the booty. Quite a religion, eh?--and quite the way to raise and maintain an army.

Non-Muslims living under Islamic rule, if they would not convert to Islam, were either forced into subservience and second-class status under Islam or put to the sword.

By the way, I'm not demanding "punishment" of anyone--I don't know where you got that from; I don't even really believe in the concept of "punishment"--I'm simply against all forms of totalitarianism (WHICH ISLAM IS) and against all forms of fascism--especially those spread by force. Islam fit both bills, and in my view it was correct for the West to try to push back the invading relio-fascism, and its armies, to from whence they came.

I don't care WHOSE religion it is, or WHAT color anyone's skin is: I'm JUST AGAINST FASCIST TOTALITARIANISM. And that is precisely what Islam is, blended with a strong religious component. And the West was right in trying to push back against the speading religio-fascism of Islam. That doesn't mean they always went about it ideally; but in principle, FASCISM, RELIGIOUS OR OTHERWISE, SHOULD ALWAYS BE RESISTED. PERIOD.