It's quite simple. In terms of engaging in realistic debate on the world stage, the adherents of fundamentalist Islam have no credibility whatsoever.

The reasons for this are manifold, but a large part of it comes down to being unwilling to engage with the cultures where Muslims live on their terms. Take, for example, the recent Danish cartoons furore: Muslims the world over were quite literally demanding the death of the cartoonists. To a liberal, secular, modernist chap like me, that is worse - much worse - than the original cartoons. It's primitive, it's immature and it's intolerant. (Tolerance is underrated. It's what lets us live together without killing each other.)

It seems that every time someone tries to state the case for Islam being a tolerant, merciful, peaceful religion, there's someone on al-Jazeera wearing a ski-mask, stood in front of a banner that says "Allah Akhbar" or similar, about to cut off someone's head with a bread knife.

I know there are moderate Muslims out there. But because they're moderate, their voice isn't heard.

Islam, as it is currently practiced, is a violent, intolerant religion that is easily subverted for political ends.

[Anecdote: recently, there was a story here in the UK about a growing demand for Sharia law to be allowed in various parts of the north of England. My response is quite simple: "if you don't like the law of the land, go find a land whose law you DO like". I suspect that the kinds of places that have Sharia law in place also don't have an NHS, safe streets, a generous welfare system, working public transport and cable TV, which is why the people in (say) Bradford who are clamouring for Sharia won't simply bugger off to a place that has it, like northern Nigeria.]