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Apropos muslim immigrants who become jihadists
Reader comment on item: The California Suicide Bomber[: Ra'ed Mansour al-Banna]

Submitted by Gabriel Rinzler (United States), Apr 4, 2005 at 22:52

When I was 7 years old I went to school in a small village. When my parents realised that an antisemitic teacher was persecuting me, they send me to a near-by city. I felt inadequate among the city boys and as a reaction became a fighter.

My brother came to the US in his forties without a profession and started out as an elevator operator. In a few year he became a manager in a large bakery. This opportunity is was attracts people from all over the world to America. I know lawyers, physicians, economists,etc, who had to start on menial jobs and through hard work made something of themselves. But if you don't have the
strength to go through a difficult time (and you come from a different culture) you might blame the new place for your misfortune. At this point one can fall under the influence of those who hate America to become a jihadist.

Granted this is a simplistic explanation. On one side it is hard to understand how an educated man becomes a suicidal murderer. But history is full of cases of extreme ideologues (religious; anarchists; communists) who are ready to give their lives for their cause.
I wonder how many our so-called "academicians" and "professors" in Mid-Eastern departments have contributed to influence naive youths to hate America.

Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened for relevance, substance, and tone, and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome, but comments are rejected if scurrilous, off-topic, vulgar, ad hominem, or otherwise viewed as inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the Guidelines for Comments. For informational purposes, we identify countries from which comments are sent.

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Reader comments (34) on this item

Title By Date
Answer to Mumbai [323 words]Arlinda DeAngelisApr 26, 2005 08:17
Why does this not happen in other religions? [146 words]Yldaed SurivApr 15, 2005 15:09
How much Islam is responsible for creating terrorists [27 words]A.AhmedApr 13, 2005 11:47
The article [323 words]AllenApr 10, 2005 11:21
The problem with that formula [127 words]Emmanuel ParelloApr 8, 2005 13:37
How come the family did not know about their son? [623 words]N. KhalediApr 7, 2005 21:59
Fodder for a teddy boy [196 words]Donald OApr 7, 2005 21:17
Why does a normal Muslim turn into a terrorist? [20 words]Ayesha A.Apr 7, 2005 13:02
Honesty [79 words]S.C.PandaApr 6, 2005 05:54
Missing the wood for the trees [417 words]Ghulam Muhammed, MumbaiApr 6, 2005 00:57
Looking for new recruits [451 words]JohnApr 5, 2005 15:43
Australian model: Sure, but.... [150 words]JB TantApr 5, 2005 14:21
Preview of things to come......... [228 words]Warren BaconApr 5, 2005 12:56
The guy was a crackpot... [378 words]Nabil AhmadApr 5, 2005 12:02
Friend or Foe?? [211 words]Rebecca E. MouldsApr 5, 2005 12:01
Probably recruited while still in Jordan [88 words]Richard ConoboyApr 5, 2005 11:20
Strange Biography [152 words]WernerApr 5, 2005 00:05
Why are Muslims so obsessed with "honor"? [98 words]Funk Soul BruhvaApr 4, 2005 23:29
⇒ Apropos muslim immigrants who become jihadists [218 words]Gabriel RinzlerApr 4, 2005 22:52
So what if someone who hated us passed through? [217 words]Peter J. HerzApr 4, 2005 21:59
Jihadis [59 words]Donald W. BalesApr 4, 2005 19:58
To Error is Human, to Kill is Martydom [69 words]Chris KApr 4, 2005 19:52
Or, perhaps, a distraught man? [198 words]G. LobeApr 4, 2005 18:58
The case for immigration control: the Australian model
[w/response] [188 words]
Octavio JohansonApr 4, 2005 17:50
The Australian immigration-system [18 words]JAFeb 18, 2006 19:21
Australian immigration policies [58 words]KevinJan 2, 2009 20:11
Great Details and Analysis [79 words]AlexApr 4, 2005 17:17
What are we looking for? [91 words]Marcy GlanzApr 4, 2005 16:59
The California Suicide Bomber and Cognitive dissonance [126 words]Stan FuttermanApr 4, 2005 16:05
Credibility
[w/response] [126 words]
David PintoApr 4, 2005 15:57
Another brick in the wall [89 words]Darwin BarrettApr 4, 2005 15:57
Islam a Jihadist religion [194 words]Gloria StewartApr 4, 2005 15:16
SLEEPERS'S TACTICS [192 words]Marcos BerensteinApr 4, 2005 14:53
Where are the real America Moslims? [31 words]JP ArcherJun 1, 2006 12:50

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Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened for relevance, substance, and tone, and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome, but comments are rejected if scurrilous, off-topic, vulgar, ad hominem, or otherwise viewed as inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the Guidelines for Comments. For informational purposes, we identify countries from which comments are sent.

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