Axiom number one of belief systems:

There's no such thing as "we believe".

That's an oxymoron. Belief belongs to the individual, not the collective.

Blaming an entire religion for the actions of one or a few people, is just like being a die-hard partisan in the <pick one> political party.

But that's the human tendency, right? We "subscribe" to make ourselves feel like we "belong". It's symptomatic of the human ego, there's nothing difficult to understand there.

There are extremists in every religion. There are Jewish extremists, Christian extremists, Buddhist extremists, Hindu extremists.... the list goes on.

It just so happens that the current "culture" of Islam is somewhat unique in the way it ties together politics, religion, and the law. But that's not to say it couldn't develop (or continue to develop), as every other religion has, without exception.

So no, I don't buy into your thesis. From my standpoint, that would be a pretty primitive way of looking at the world.

I mean, you personally may not be running around killing people in the name of God, but character assassination is kind of "murder" too, isn't it?

Think of it this way: by blaming "them", aren't you becoming exactly what you're accusing "them" of being?