most people reject the clash of civilizations argument
[even a plurality of USers take the sensible position]
nid=3D&id=3D&pnt=3D317&lb=3Dhmpg1> Global Poll Finds that Religion and Culture are Not to Blame for = Tensions between Islam and the West The global public believes that tensions between Islam and the West = arise from conflicts over political power and interests and not from = differences of religion and culture, according to a BBC World Service = poll across 27 countries. While three in ten (29%) believe religious or cultural differences = are the cause of tensions, a slight majority (52%) say tensions are = due to conflicting interests. The poll also reveals that most people see the problems arising from = intolerant minorities and not the cultures as a whole. While 26 = percent believe fundamental differences in cultures are to blame, 58 = percent say intolerant minorities are causing the conflict =96 with = most of these (39% of the full sample) saying that the intolerant = minorities are on both sides. The idea that violent conflict is inevitable between Islam and the = West is mainly rejected by Muslims, non-Muslims and Westerners alike. = While more than a quarter of all respondents (28%) think that violent = conflict is inevitable, twice as many (56%) believe that =93common = ground can be found.=94 The survey of over 28,000 respondents across 27 countries was = conducted for the BBC World Service by the international polling firm = GlobeScan together with the Program on International Policy Attitudes = (PIPA) at the University of Maryland. GlobeScan coordinated the = fieldwork between November 2006 and January 2007. =93Most people around the world clearly reject the idea that Islam and = the West are caught in an inevitable clash of civilizations,=94 said = Steven Kull, director of the Program on International Policy = Attitudes at the University of Maryland. […]