It seems Hamdan A. Yousuf thinks if Muslims were simply treated as civilized humans, and afforded the basic human rights and dignities due to any other people, the problems, both real and perceived, between Muslims and the West would vanish ("Western media perpetuates negative Muslim stereotypes," March 14).

Shouldn't that cultural respect go both ways? In Saudi Arabia, a person can be arrested and jailed for simply wearing a cross under his or her clothes. Why don't I have the right to be Christian in Saudi Arabia? I show my respect for Islamic traditions by removing my shoes when I enter a mosque or other holy place, not by allowing my culture which allows, and encourages, political and religious dissent in the form of satirical cartoons to be subverted.

Asking that I, a non-believer, abide by all Islamic rules is not seeking respect, it is a requirement that I submit to Islam. Muslims literally demand their cultural traditions and rules be obeyed, yet they are predominantly intolerant of Western cultural traditions.