While I applaud Mr. Casey’s commitment to energy self-sufficiency, his call to “cut off all ties to all Islamic countries” is profoundly short-sighted. There are a 1.25 billion Muslims in the world, approximately one-fifth of the world’s population.

Predominantly Muslim countries extend from our long-standing allies of Senegal and Morocco in the western part of Africa to the southeast Asian nation of Indonesia.

Muslim nations of Central Asia provided essential support for the U.S. intervention against the Taliban in Afghanistan.

Mr. Casey seems unaware that Saddam Hussein is not regarded as a devout Muslim in most of the Islamic world. In the 1980s, the Ayatollah Khomeini, who knows something about Islam, denounced Saddam as an atheist and an enemy of the faith. President Bush has also criticized Saddam for his treatment of Muslims in Iraq. I suspect that one of the few things that Bush and the Ayatollah Khomeini would agree on is that Saddam is not much of a Muslim.

As to the claims that Islam is a religion of peace, I can suggest three things: 1) The root word for Islam is the same as the word for peace. 2) The Qu’ran, the holy book of Islam, is filled with condemnations of aggression, i.e. “God hates the aggressor.” and 3) I have lived for over four years in predominantly Muslim countries.

None of these countries have significant amounts of oil. What they did have was extraordinary warmth, graciousness and hospitality. I will be returning to a Muslim country, Senegal, next summer and expect to receive the extraordinary welcome that I always have.

Robert M. Baum

Associate Professor

Religious Studies