Yo jOhn, personally I am an atheist but I firmly believe everybody should be free to hold any religion or belief as long as it does not interfere or impinge on others.
I live in West Yorkshire and I too have muslim friends, Cat Stevens
[ actually from a Cypriot background ] having been raised in this liberal country has adopted someone elses religion and like all other fanatics wanted to impose a corrupted version on others, maybe he is more liberal now ? I don't know, nevertheless he has had a priveliged upbringing in this country and ought to respect it better.

eric