Connect the Dots...
In Afghanistan we have Canadian troops fighting against the Taliban in Kandahar Province. They are there as part of an international force dedicated to their countries' determination to assist Afghanistan in ridding itself of a ferociously fundamentalist Muslim faction determined to once more take over the country for the purpose of installing their brand of Islam and Shariah law in a brutal theocratic dictatorship. The country was originally invaded by the United States' forces and those of its willing partners to oust the Taliban, known for their support of Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda, in the wake of the bombing of the World Trade Centre buildings in New York City.The Taliban are another face of the extreme Islamists whose declared purpose and vision is to assume power in any country where sheer numbers of extremist supporters along with their jihadist armies permit them to, from Afghanistan to Somalia, Iran to Lebanon. Regardless of what these terrorist groups call themselves, Hamas, Taliban, Fatah, Revolutionary Guards, Hezbollah, and all of the various off-shoots of determined Islamists, they have one goal in common: to usurp power from established governments and the rule of law and bring fundamentalist Islam to the fore.
In the process they are willing and proving themselves quite capable, of instilling fear and terror into civilian populations whose form of Islamic worship does not echo theirs, into populations within Europe and North America, by means familiar to terrorists of every stripe. Total domination in the name of Islam is the ultimate goal, and for some, achieving the ultimate victory is to sacrifice oneself through voluntary death while killing as many other people as possible. Jihadist Islam is a cult of death, and the promise of total Armageddon is the longed-for event that will serve to reunite true believers to Allah's bosom, while his detractors and all infidels will languish in perpetuity in the ovens of hell.
While this sounds ludicrously medieval, its passionate believers are dedicated to bringing about the total annihilation of any who would thwart their ultimate designs. To most intelligent people such outlandish and perfectly lunatic plans are inconceivable, simply unbelievable. But if any proof need be given, one has only to view events which have taken place in the last decade. It doesn't take much in the way of analytical skills, augmented by rhetoric coming out of the Middle East and other Muslim states to understand that as incredible as these aspirations seem to a reasoning human mind, they are the deadly serious intent of jihadists.
Al-Qaeda emanated from the hate-filled psyche of Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan. Another group, as dedicated as he and his sect are to the destruction of the Western world and its supposedly corrupting influences, the Taliban, gave them protection, and continues to do so, along with considerable assistance from Pakisani jihadists. They fight a war of terror against the West, fully committed to the task at hand and ready to take any and every opportunity to prove their commitment, using undreamed-of violence to leave as many dead behind as possible. The rational mind simply cannot ingest this kind of dedication to wreaking havoc and causing innumerable deaths in the process. For an idea, an ideal completely devoid of any kind of humane impulse.
Jihadists hate anything that is Western, most particularly do they detest and wish to obliterate the United States. Because of Israel's geographic location within this viper's nest, and because the country is a liberal democracy closely aligned to the United States, with obviously Western values, it has become a plaything, a proxy, an inviting target for jihadists. In their innocence, Europe assimilated into their populations huge numbers of Muslims, most of whom truly are peace-loving decent people, but from among whom appears in small but significant numbers those sufficiently disaffected to wish to join the jihadist cause.
These European jihadists are clever enough to understand the general European (and North American) desire to be fair and decent above all, and to recognize the great strides these societies go to to accept Muslims as equals within their midst. In response to what appears to be a collective guilt complex, the public relations arms of bitterly anti-Western Muslims know how to manipulate public opinion, to claim their innocence despite proof to the contrary, to blame particular "others" upon whom they prey as the true culprits in world destabilization - and their declarations are accepted as fact. Particularly when the world's all-time favourite scapegoat, the Jews, are implicated. Just look at this humble declaration of sincerity issued by the Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran, in the words of Mormoz Ghanremani:
"Iran, as a recognized stabilizing factor in the region, joins the people of Lebanon, the Muslim world, and neighbouring countries in the region in calling upon the international community to exert its influence on Israel for an immediate ceasefire and withdrawal of occupying troops from the southern parts of Lebanon. ...Iran supports any Lebanese peace initiative fully agreed to by all Lebanese parties and groups involved."How's that for a forked tongue? The single most destabilizing country in the world, determined to attain nuclear mastery for the purpose of ultimately achieving nuclear weaponry, which isn't the least bit shy of declaring its intent to exterminate a neighbouring country, and which has no hesitation in holding the rest of the world to ransom for its oil. This is the country where the great Ayatollah Komenei was instrumental in sending out legions of young boys barely in their teens to act as dispensible, disposable fodder in its war with Iraq, and who formed the Revolutionary Guard trained and equipped to resolutely wage battle in the name of Allah.
Throughout the world, in Muslim countries and European and North American cities, demonstrations declaring support for jihad and jihadists in the guise of condemning Israel's aggressive war tactics in response to jihadist attacks on their country have gained wide support among intellectuals, socialists, trade unions. These groups become so blinded by their disapproval and distrust of Israel and Jews in general that they are willing to believe any odious slanders brought against the Jewish State.
Pastor Martin Niemoller, appalled at what was happening in Germany during the Second World War, questioned the quiescence of German intellectuals, their seeming unconcern with the horrible direction their country was taking, the dreadful acts of carnage and mass murder undertaken in the name of Germany:
We have seen how France deals with mass protests and destruction of civic infrastructure by disaffected Muslim populations. We have seen how Denmark trembled under the onslaught of righteous Muslim indignation at the perceived slight to Muhammad. Spain and Britain have been taught how vulnerable their public is. Mumbai has been brought to its knees by the ferocity of a jihadist onslaught. Britain has now apprehended another planned catastrophe. Canada and the United States continue to bring to light additional cadres of Islamists willing and eager to teach the West yet another lesson in terror.
When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.
When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.
When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.
When they came for the Jews,
I did not speak out;
I was not a Jew.
When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out.
Ah, but no one is supposed to utter the words that somehow a corrupted Islam has produced Muslims who constitute a high danger to the societies around them. To do so is to do a disservice to the huge numbers of innocent Muslims who themselves are victims of the very same jihadists. Well, isn't it time the vast numbers of peace-loving Muslims stood up and declared themselves unwilling to permit their religion to be taken hostage by murderers and psychopaths any longer?
Isn't it past time for intelligent people everywhere to look this crisis square in its cause and support the countries, institutions and groups engaged in ferreting out these death-deliverers? That would include the Communists, the Trade Unionists, the Intellectuals. It's past time to recognize the need of the scape goat, for once Israel's attempt to contain the jihadists' ability to exterminate those it hates comes to nothing, guess who will be next in line?
Far-fetched, isn't it? Flying airplanes into huge skyscrapers is far-fetched, isn't it? Blowing up subway lines is far-fetched, isn't it? Smuggling liquid explosives on to international flights in a concerted effort to destroy upwards of three thousand passengers is far-fetched, isn't it?
Are we really supporting our Armed Services deployed in far-off lands, fighting for freedom? Are we internally, morally, psychologically conflicted? Get over it. There's one hell of a lot at stake.
posted by Pieface @ Friday, August 11, 2006
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