Who can best fit within the American political frame?

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According to recent CNN/ORC Poll Hillary Clinton emerges from her party’s convention in Philadelphia with a restored lead over Donald Trump, having earned a 7-point convention bounce. Now Clinton tops Trump 52% to 43%, and in a four-way matchup including third party candidates Gary Johnson and Jill Stein, Clinton leads 45% to 37% with Johnson at 9% and Stein at 5%.Besides improving her standing against Trump, Clinton’s convention appears to have boosted the share of Americans who think her policies will move the country in the right direction (from 43% before either convention to 48% now), while Trump’s right direction number held roughly steady following the back-to-back political gatherings in Cleveland and Philadelphia.

It is to be noted that Hillary claimed the Democratic presidential nomination in June 2016, after decisive victories in the California, New Jersey and New Mexico primaries, and she quickly appealed to supporters of Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont to unite with her against Donald J. Trump.

Clinton with her steady confident way and her experience within the political life for many years, might be in fact more appealing to the American citizens and the American political system, more than her counterpart Donald trump, whose most of his experience is within the business field and who has been constantly shocking the political platform with his controversial declarations and his showy entertaining way; especially after his recent declarations that he is planning to run the United States as he is running his business!.

 Although, the two candidates, Clinton and Trump, have distinctive political approaches, the main thing they shared is their declarations about Islam. It started by Trump controversial declarations who called for barring all Muslims from entering the United States and  for a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States.

As for the other Presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton, she has been more cautious, while talking about Islam; according to Washington Examiner,  during her democratic presidential debate, Hillary Clinton used a lot of adjectives to describe terrorist acts, but   “Islamic” was not one of them. She used, terms as, “Jihadis”, and “radical Islam”.

 The important question is why does the term “Islamic”, is used constantly as an adjective to identify terrorist acts? Does committing terrorist acts using the name of a specific religion, make terrorism part of this religion?

In fact, many studies have been conducted, about terrorists; according to a research by the library of congress, named, “THE SOCIOLOGY AND PSYCHOLOGY OF TERRORISM: WHO BECOMES A TERRORIST AND WHY?”; economic, political, and social factors have always motivated radical activists, as well as the possibility that biological or physiological variables may play a role in bringing an individual to the point of perpetrating terrorism. The research also points out that individuals who become terrorists often are unemployed, socially alienated individuals who have dropped out of society.

 Bit by bit terrorists gradually become divorced from reality, engaging in what is described as a “fantasy war”.

The question is, Where does Islam fit in here?

 Furthermore, other terrorist acts might be committed using the name of other religions as Christianity and Judaism, however, they get poor media coverage, in opposed to terrorist act committed using the name of Islam.

According to a report published by Global Research Website, there were more Jewish acts of terrorism within the United States than Islamic.  These radical Jews committed acts of terrorism , were committed using  the name of their religion.  These were not terrorists who happened to be Jews; rather, they were extremist Jews who committed acts of terrorism based on their religious passions, just like Al-Qaeda; according to the Triangle Centre on Terrorism and Homeland Security, approximately 2.5% of all terrorist attacks on U.S. soil between 1970 and 2012 were carried out by Muslims.  This is a small  proportion of all attacks, which included attacks under separatist agendas, attacks motivated by single issues, such as animal rights or opposition to war, or religious beliefs.

In fact, political declarations in the US and media coverage might seem very ambiguous, especially that there are continuous political and economic relations between the US and the Arab Muslim world. For instance, the candidate Trump who has been creating controversies with his declarations, has major investment in Muslim countries; his projects in the United Arab Emirates, in Turkey, Azerbaijan, Indonesia , are bringing him millions of Dollars, according to money CNN.com.

It is to be noted that such contradicting policies or exaggerated coverage by US media about Islam, does create reactions within the American society; whether those reactions are pro or con.

Recently a controversial Mural for Hillary Clinton, has been drawn to cover a more controversial graffiti, picturing Hillary wearing a “Niqab”, which is a black outfit used by Muslim Women to cover up; next to the mural, it is written :“ If this woman offends you, you are a bigot, racist, sexist, Islamaphobe!.”

 

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