"Look it's not that complicated. Yusuf Islam thought that Salman Rushdie committed heresy. He also apparently thinks that Islamic texts support fatwahs on those who commit heresay. However, he never said he supports the fatwah on Rushdie (apparently he believes that civil and moral laws against murder would prevent him from supporting the fatwah)."
Well, I remember it differently, and I wish I had access to that BBC roundtable where Islam denounced Rushdie and made that ridiculous suggestion about writing a book-long apology. But it didn't piss me off as much as it did Hitchens, and the story in the bar is a true one. Still, I'll take you at your word.
"The reason why this oft repeated bit of misinformation bothers me is that it is solely rooted in prejudice against Muslims (this was the sole motivation for the tabloid hysteria and gossip--now repeated unfortuntately 14 years later)."
Not my intention. I have no problems with Muslims, save for those who do call for the deaths of authors, fly planes into buildings or shoot "adulterous" women in the head.
DP