Islam vs. islam seems redundant or banal. It’s neither. Rather, it’s a division which cuts through the endless, rehashed op-eds we have to suffer through every time some Muslim or Muslim-presenting individual blows up, throws acid, takes hostages, or kills. The semantics is a dream for the labyrinth operator. Smoke and mirrors allow celebrity columnists-of-the-day to obfuscate in 600-800 word bits by (1) appealing to Islam in the abstract, and (2) citing a few leaders who expertly hand-wave and disavow violence. Islam is a religion of peace, and so on. For the second point, the columnist usually throws in a […]