Monday, September 06, 2004

 
A Spade is a Spade
Item 1 is an Op-Ed by Ralph Peters which includes the following:
If Muslim religious leaders around the world will not publicly condemn the taking of children as hostages and their subsequent slaughter ? if those "men of faith" will not issue a condemnation without reservations or caveats ? then no one need pretend any longer that all religions are equally sound and moral.
My feelings on religion notwithstanding, I think it's time we get honest and let everyone know that the single largest — indeed the defining — component of the War on Terror is a war against radical Islam. Inasmuch as there are actually some few "Moderate Muslims" (ie. Muslims who believe in the separation of church and state,) this is not a war against all Islam, but certainly most of it.

Item 2 is this post at Chicago-Boyz entitled, "The Ideology of Total War: The Wars on Civilians" and it includes this quote from Item 2a, Jane Novak's post, "The Path to School #1" attributed to Imam Al-Sudayyis of the Grand Mosque in Mecca:
You have revived the hopes of this nation through your blessed Jihad. By Allah, be patient until, with Allah's help, one of two good things will be awarded you: either victory or martyrdom. Our hearts are with you; our prayers are dedicated to you. The Islamic nation will not spare money or effort in support of your cause.
The piece goes on to make a rational case for what the overwhelming majority of westerners know through cultural conditioning, namely that killing children in the name of politics, Allah or any damn thing else, is BARBARISM — you know, an act committed by the product of a primitive culture.

Though I don't recall the source, not long after September 11, some bureaucrat or other from Italy (I believe) dared to suggest that western culture was indeed superior to Muslim culture. He was characterized by the ephebish European press as a Neanderthal, but I'll stand squarely in his court until such time as the Imams and Mullahs show as much concern for innocent children as they do for French journalism.

posted by Malaclypse the Tertiary at 1:41 AM ·


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