The Politically Incorrect Guide to Islam (and the Crusades)

Robert Spencer is an Islamophobe due to his consistent portrayal of Islam and Muslims in a negative light, as well as his association with various anti-Muslim groups and individuals. Spencer has written numerous books and articles that deceptively focus on the perceived threats posed by Islam and Muslims. His writings often emphasize the fringe and extremist interpretations of Islamic texts and historical events, suggesting that these represent mainstream Islamic beliefs. Critics argue that he selectively presents information to paint Islam as inherently violent and intolerant. Spencer is the founder of Jihad Watch, a website dedicated to monitoring what he describes as "jihadist activity." Critics argue that the site frequently posts sensationalist and alarmist content about Muslims, contributing to a climate of fear and hostility towards Islam. Spencer has been associated with organizations and individuals that promote anti-Muslim sentiments. For instance, he has been linked with Pamela Geller, with whom he co-founded the American Freedom Defense Initiative, which has been labeled a hate group by organizations such as the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC). Spencer has made a career of making false inflammatory and Islamophobic statements. For example, he has claimed that "Islam is the only religion in the world that has a developed doctrine and tradition of warfare against unbelievers." His works have been cited by individuals and groups with extreme anti-Muslim views, including Anders Behring Breivik, the Norwegian terrorist who carried out attacks in 2011. The use of his writings by such individuals has added to the perception of his work as Islamophobic. Mainstream scholars of Islam and Middle Eastern studies have criticized Spencer's work as being false, lacking scholarly rigor, and promoting a hatred of Islam. They argue that his interpretations are not representative of the diverse and multifaceted nature of Islamic thought and practice. Overall, the combination of his hateful presentation of Islamic teachings, associations with known anti-Muslim activists, and the reception of his work by extremist elements contribute to his reputation as a rabid Islamophobe. Critics argue that he has a racist approach that fosters misunderstanding and prejudice against Muslims rather than contributing to constructive dialogue between faiths and understanding.

When reading any critical piece it’s so important to keep in mind the context. To understand the Quran and it’s complexities and implications you really need to spend years of learning the book with other scholars. You cannot read an English translation and focus your whole book on it and make due judgment on it. Tragically misguiding people on the second largest faith in the world is just poor judgment on the authors part.

This book obliterates simplistic, politically correct views about Islam. The word-for-word comparisons between the teachings of Muhammed and the teachings of Christianity, Buddhism, and other religions, are stunning. Take, for example, the famous story of Jesus' intervention when a crowd was about to stone an adulterous woman. His words, to let the person "who is without sin cast the first stone", sent the mob retreating in shame. He then told the woman to, "Go and sin no more." As the autor quotes from the Quran, Muhammed was confronted with a similar situation. A pregnant adulterous woman had come to him requesting that he pray with her for forgiveness. He sent her away until the baby was born. When she came back months later, he sent her away until the child was weened. When she came back as directed, he took the child and gave it to one of his men as a gift. Muhammed then ordered the mother buried up to her shoulders and stoned to death. It really is time for media pundits, college professors, and self-serving politicos to stop making shallow moral equivalence statements about Islam, the Quran, and the Crusades. This book needs to be read and studied by those who now are in a position to give away our birthright. It took the ancient Greeks, the Judeo-Christian tradition, the Magna Carta, the U.S. Constitution, and hundreds of years of Western Civilization to produce the most beneficent and free society in history. Here, Muslims and others can practice their beliefs without fear. We must insist that spokesmen and apologists for Islam demand that this "religion of peace" grant its neighbors the same rights the Western democracies have gladly given to them. Read the book. Its an eye-opener.

After reading some of the reviews below I am prone to wonder how many of the frothy critics of this book actually read it. Even from the far left (the ever stalwart supporters of all those who hate America) I hear the droning mantra bewailing the supposed characterization of Islam by the extreme acts of an anomalous few. But Spencer does not make such a characterization. Most of this book does not examine the actions of extremists but instead the tenets of Islam itself. His conclusions are well reasoned and documented; and horrifying! If you have ever wondered why the millions of "peace-loving" Muslims have not condemned en mass the Jihadists who spew hatred and spill the blood of innocent people all over the world, then get this book and find out. Spencer concludes that violence is a natural outgrowth of the intolerance taught by Islam. Of course, many of us were taught the myth of Muslim tolerance, yet the Quran famously commands any faithful Muslim to "Slay the Unbelievers wherever ye find them. Seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them? (Quran 9:5) It is a verse that is not lifted out of context or a rare anomaly or mitigated by the larger body of teaching (as the nonviolent verses of the New Testament clearly abrogate the descriptions of violence contained in the Old Testament) but, is in fact, only one of many such incitements to violence. Spencer believes that such violent leanings are endemic to Islam and explain the complicity of silence we see from the Muslim world when innocents are murdered by Jihadists. Spencer also deals fairly with the perennially festering topic of the Crusades. It is bizarre and questionable that any present day political ideology should be driven by events that took place a thousand years ago. What's more, I wonder why so many Westerners collapse into a guilt coma at the mere mention of the Crusades without asking some important questions. How did the ancient birth place of Christianity, the stomping grounds of the Apostle Paul, St. Augustine, and the incubator that produced the creed most Christians repeat on Sunday mornings become Muslim in the first place? It was the result of Muhammad's war of conquests which lasted almost a thousand years that swallowed the birthplace of Christianity and then stomped out the light that once burned so brightly there. The Crusades were a belated, misguided, and often ignoble response to hundreds of years of Islamic "crusades." That march of brutal Islamic imperialism and colonization in the name of Allah ended at the gates of Vienna on a date that should mean something to the world: September 11, 1683. To be a good Muslim is to long for the renewal of that conquest of Europe and the West. Spencer explains many of the draconian and intolerant beliefs of Islam without the incoherent contortions that Islamic apologists give to such issues as the sickening mistreatment of women and girls or the Nazi-like (complete with yellow patches on the clothing) Dhimmi status

As the title indicates, this book unfolds the history of Islam, revealing an often less-than-charitable religion. Some of the details were shocking to learn. The author uncovers details of Islamic culture that never see the light of the regularly syndicated T.V. and print media. This book is a must-read for anyone trying to make sense of the current conflicts around the world.