Atheists urge "measured" response to Muslim extremists

21.07.09, AMERICAN CHRONICLE (US). An atheist public policy group today urged secularists and religious groups alike -- including moderate Muslims -- to speak out against the violent and authoritarian agenda voiced by extremists meeting Sunday in Chicago. Hizb ut Tahrir -- a Sunni organization with reported ties to 9/11 terrorists including Khalid Sheikh Mohammed -- held a conference Sunday, "The Fall of Capitalism and the Rise of Islam." The group denied that it preaches violence, but critics say that it advocates theocracy and jihad. A video promoting the conference linked the West to a range of ills including militarism, drug use and even divorce. It showed a Muslim rally with a banner declaring "Freedom of Speech is an Attack on Islam." Ed Buckner, President of American Atheists, urged religious and non-religious groups to denounce the Hizb ut Tahrir agenda for violence and intolerance.