Spencer's thesis is simple: It is not possible to separate out a violent and a peaceful Islam--both spring from exactly the same root.
He addresses in each chapter issues like "Does Islam Respect Human Rights," The Crusades: Christian and Muslim," "Is Islam Tolerant of Non-Muslims," and "Does Islam Promote and Safeguard Sound Moral Values?" To answer the latter he draws heavily on the life of Muhammad, showing his prophecies to be remarkably solicitous of Muhammad's sex life. It is trivial to demonstrate that Islam is not a particularly peaceful religion. The Crusades were the Western reaction to the Muslim jihad, after all.
While Spencer recognizes periods of tolerance of non-Muslims, he cites Bat Yeor and a number of other historical incidents to show that intolerance is just as fundamental as tolerance.
That there are many peaceful Muslims is not germane to the issue. It is possible to be a peaceful Muslim and true to traditions of the founder of Islam. It is also possible to be a violent and intolerant Muslim and still be true to the traditions of the founder, and Spencer illustrates the sources of these traditions. It is not possible to be a violent and intolerant Christian and still be true to the dictates of Jesus.
Without drastic reform, Islam will continue to inspire violent subgroups. And (though Spencer doesn't address this) there isn't a simple rule for reform. Qur'an-only doesn't help, nor does "Qur'an plus only the best-attested hadith."
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