[Goater]

I really hope we dont get bogged down in this debate re whether Islam is conducive or not to learning, advancement, etc... or if Jews are intellectually more productive, etc... For what its worth, I believe that the Islamic world has produced some spectacular thinkers and has contributed greatly to humanity in the past. For a variety of extremely complicated reasons, not all due to the progression of Islam or the fault of muslims themselves, I think the muslim world in general is in a deep lull today - but that has not always been the case. The Muslim world was very different centuries ago and its not true that they stifled learning, didnt contribute to world knowledge and that they only advanced due to the influx of outsiders.

Re the deportation issue - virtually noone takes this seriously and its basically not going to happen. Despite huge problems inside Israel with its arab citizens (for which Israel must take a significant part of the blame), deportation is seen as an issue only a small lunatic fringe would consider. My hope is that one day in the future, when the Palestinians have a state of their own, the differences Israeli arabs have with other Israelis will be smoothed over. A resolution of the arab israeli conflict would certainly be a hugely beneficial thing for all the citizens of the middle east.