For anyone with an AIESEC.net login, there is a great discussion thread right now talking about the whole controversy, with plenty of input from Muslim and non-Muslim AIESEC'ers from around the world.

For those who can't read the whole thread, Aatif, a US trainee in Egypt, posted what I think is the best reaction so far:

"Prophet Muhammad (S) himself, as did all prophets, encountered enormous resistance, ridicule, harrassment, and insult during their lives as they sought to spread religion. In one story commonly told to children, and which I heard many times growing up, a woman would throw sheep intestines at him every morning on the way to the mosque. He never said anything, he never changed his route, he simply kept walking every day, and she would simply throw sheep intestines at him every day. One day he was walking and she wasn't there. Instead of burning her house, or attacking her, throwing things, he asked around to see what happened to her. He found out that she was sick, and he visited her with food and water.

She converted on the spot.

This is how Islam spread so fast in its early years. The Prophet showered his enemies with kindness, and you can imagine how the recipient of that kindness must have been amazed. What could inspire someone to endure so much and still return with kindness and concern for her well-being? Muslims see the Prophet as a role model for everything, and it's sad to see almost everyone abandoning this lesson of the Prophet in this controversy.

The violent responses, the flagburning, and even the boycotts are not shows of strength. Anyone can burn a flag or march in the streets. They show weakness and insecurity, not strength. This insecurity is understandable, but it's an abandonment of the Prophet's teachings. As even Nietzsche has said, mercy is the ultimate show of strength: it shows security, that you don't need to respond, that the offense doesn't even matter. Muslims should be bigger than this. Stereotypes are not going to go away on their own, and by responding crazily to a stupid cartoon, Muslims can only appear weak, unreasonable, and just silly."

Read the whole thread if you can, lots of great stuff and growing by about 5 posts per minute right now......