These days I am amused but disappointed in the stereotypes perpetuated by Westerners talking about people of the Middle East. The words they use are charged with emotions, political/religious viewpoints, and, most importantly, ignorance. Words and phrases like, Islamist, terrorist, backward, veils, close-minded, hatred, and suicidal dot every discussion about Muslims or the Middle East.

Being a teacher of students from Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Kuwait, and other nations of the faith and region, I get to meet the very people that are so slandered and disparaged.

My Saudi students don't, in any way, resemble the worst negative stereotypes I hear.

Religious
They certainly are religious. It's amazing to me that Christians are admired when they are pious, but Muslims get less respect as being "fundamentalist" and following faith blindly. In actuality, one should admire their devotion to their god, which is, after all, the same god that Jews and Christians follow. A substantial number of Christians don't even go to church once a week, let alone pray five times a day.

Every day, five times a day, the Muslim students in my school wash their hands, feet, and faces, find an empty classroom (usually mine), put down a rug, turn towards Mecca and pray together. A husband and wife pray at a separate time and room.

This selfless activity touches me. While the rest of us are out satisfying our hungry stomachs, they take the time to pray patiently in a communal way before eating.

Sexism
We have had Saudi women in the school. There are two now. Forget what the media and popular Western opinion is of Saudi or Muslim women. They wear modern, sometimes sexy, fashion (one of them keeps her hair covered), are outspoken and candid, and behave, in every outward way, equal to the Saudi men. One is a business woman, the other a chemistry major.

I have assigned essays about a variety of political topics about women and almost all the men support women's rights and equality.

Politeness
You'll never meet anyone more polite than Saudis. They run neck-and-neck with Japanese and Koreans. The always speak respectfully and do little things, like insist elders walk through a door first and do a small knock on the door jam when they enter a room. Each morning they meet us with bright greetings and warm smiles.

Ten years ago, most of the Saudis did not extend as much politeness to the female faculty as the men. But this is now no longer the case.

Things have been changing in the last few years. The new generations are not the image of their grandparents. King Abdullah, far more liberal than his predecessors, is promoting the opening of Saudi students' minds, sponsoring the students at my school to study English in many nations all over the world.

While even the brightest students will sometimes say something that shows a religious contrast to modern science (that humans are not animals for instance), we have had wonderful poltical and social discussions with the European, Asian, and South American students that had great insights and compassion for humanity.

So, while wild-eyed, West-hating, fundamentalist youth that bomb city streets get all the press, remember that they do not represent their fellow countrymen or other Muslims any more than the people who assassinate abortion doctors and bomb government buildings in Oklahoma in the US represent Americans.