What Islam needs is a pope.

The age-old ploy of justifying the commission of atrocities by one group by citing examples of atrocities committed by another must be condemned. Evil deeds remain evil deeds, and evil and evil deeds beget evil deeds. Our only hope is to stop focusing on the bad and start focusing on the good. For conflicting ideologies to learn tolerance for each other, common moral ground must be found. What is perhaps surprising (but should not be) is that if people are prepared to make the effort, much common ground is available. Perhaps the best starting point would be the shared common belief that good must in the end triumph over evil. However, in the light of the current debate this requires that the word evil should not be open to interpretation. The end cannot justify the means.