As a Muslim, I am starting to detest the term “moderate Muslim.” The term somehow indicates that if one merely uses the word “Muslim” to describe an adherent to Islam one means radical or at least fundamentalist. After all, if ‘moderate’ is normal, why name it? We use the term radical or extremist or fundamentalist Muslim to emphasize the radical nature of the individual we describe. This, in effect, makes clear that the far majority of Muslims are not extremist in any way, for the distinction would not be made if such were the case.

Nonetheless, ‘moderate’ Muslim is used rather often to describe those I consider “Muslim.” Those who use it often do not have ill intentions so I will not lambaste my friend Michael J. Totten for using the term in his latest article for City Journal, which happens to be a must read about the ‘moderate Muslims’ of Kosovo.

Totten explains that Kosovo’s population is majority Muslim, but that most Kosovars consider themselves Albanian (most Kosovars are Albanians) or Kosovar first and foremost, Muslim second. Seldom did he see a woman covering herself up, as so many women living in Arab countries do. Alcohol was sold and drunk just like in any Western country. In short: Kosovars may be Muslim, but they are modern and Western oriented nonetheless.

Some Wahabbis – the Saudi extreme version of Islam which forces women to cover up, implements the Sharia strictly in some ways, encourages terrorism against non-Muslims, etc. – are trying to change the ‘moderate’ nature of Kosovo’s Islam, but they are having little to no success making converts: the far, far majority of Kosovars do not want to have anything to do with a religious ideology of hatred, devisiveness, intolerance, backwardness and violence.

Strangely enough, the quest to ‘find’ ‘moderate Muslims’ continues unabated nonetheless. Certain factions, especially ‘conservatives’ in the West, will read Totten’s article, link to it, think about it for 10 seconds, and they’ll go on to write a post tomorrow, or a comment at a blog, wondering where all those ‘moderate Muslims’ are and why they never speak out against terrorism committed by extremist Muslims. These ‘moderate Muslims’ can, however, be found everywhere, from Turkey to Azerbaijan, from Azerbaijan to Kosovo, from Kosovo to Indonesia, from Indonesia to Iran (many Persians are more ‘moderate’ than many think), and from Iran to the West. The only excuse not to see them is blindness.

Of course, some will then wonder why it is that these Muslims do not declare some kind of religious war on the extremists. The answer to that question is perfectly worded by a person Totten talked to in his article for City Journal: moderate Muslims do not fight religious wars. They do not do so per definition. They fight ‘secular’ wars: for freedom, equality and democracy. When they side with non-Muslims in a war, they do so not because they want to ‘purify’ Islam but because they consider extremists to be a danger to their lives, liberty and family. But if they would fight ‘religious wars’ or wars out of religious motivation they would no longer be ‘moderate.’

This is why it has been so important for the United States and its allies to explain that both the wars on Afghanistan and Iraq were not of a religious but secular nature. Bush has certainly succeeded in doing so in Kosovo, but a lot remains to be done in the other ‘moderate Muslim countries’ mentioned earlier.