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Fire and Wood

Reader comment on item: ISIS' Imminent Demise
in response to reader comment: Not quite

Submitted by Michael S (United States), Dec 24, 2015 at 06:18

Hello, Yehuda -- or, for a Biblical play on words -- "Good Morning, Israel!"

I agree with you, and disagree with Daniel, concerning Islamic State. They will be with us a long, long time. You put the matter this way:

"(IS) represents a rejection of Western or even Eastern influence in a region it seeks to dominate in the name of Allah."

You got the horse before the cart there; whereas Daniel and the others have been putting the cart before the horse: IS doesn't consist of the ground that it controls, the way the Westphalian States of the UN do; IS is an idea, which consists of the thing it represents.

I wish the FBI, the CIA, the President of the US, the State of Israel and the rulers of the world could look at what I just said, and take it to heart. The countries of the world are like wood; IS is like a fire. You defined IS by what it represents: "a rejection of Western or even Eastern influence". Do Daniel, or the world leaders, think that this "rejection of Western or even Eastern influence" will go away, after Raqqa is taken and Syraq is transformed into a wasteland? No, it will not. It will continue to smolder, all over the Islamic world, waiting for fresh fuel to touch it and for a favorable wind to blow.

These are things one must consider, when dealing with a "Culture of Death" like the Jihadist movement.

By the way, notice that I said IS will be with us for a long time. They won't be with us forever. There are other "cultures of death" in town, such as Judaism and Christianity. Hitler thought he would have destroyed the Jews, when the last body was gassed and stuffed into the oven. But God took the heat in the crematorium smokestacks, the souls of the Jewish people, collected them together and put them into the hearts of other Jews. The result was the State of Israel, which will never be destroyed.

The true church of Jesus, my Messiah, is also such a culture of death. Our lord was killed at the stake; but his spirit was revived and quickened his body. That body rose to heaven and disappeared from view; but its spirit was poured into the hearts of his followers. They, in turn, were likewise killed; and as a pagan contemporary commented, "The blood of Christians is seed": The more they die, the more they live; until now, they cover the earth with their teaching.

We are dealing with fire here; but the world leaders are dealing with wood; because they are wooden heads and eventually, they too will burn. But because their spirits are dead, their fire will dissipate and be no more.

I'm not saying this to promote IS. The spirit of Islam is also a dead spirit, just like the spirits of the world leaders. They have a heat that stays with the embers, and sets aflame new kindling that touches it; but eventually those embers, too, will cool and die; and the fire will be snuffed out. But the Jewish people, and the people of Jesus, will live forever; because our spirit does not die with the embers: God collects our spirits, and they live forever.

Submitting....

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 and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome but not comments that are scurrilous, off-topic, commercial, disparaging religions, or otherwise inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the "Guidelines for Reader Comments".

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Reader comments (47) on this item

Title Commenter Date Thread
ISIS, ¿Imminent Demise? [233 words]Guillermo TruebaJan 15, 2016 13:16227675
The recognition of ISIS and its Caliphate [55 words]DavodDec 30, 2015 11:08227368
Not quite [133 words]Yehuda PochDec 15, 2015 08:56227074
Fire and Wood [551 words]Michael SDec 24, 2015 06:18227074
An inaccurate statement [27 words]GeppettoDec 13, 2015 15:35227032
Islam and the world [60 words]arish sahaniDec 12, 2015 11:47226994
Must the West attack ISIS in Syria? [305 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
mythDec 12, 2015 05:35226964
ISIS in not self destructive [178 words]Curtis FreedlandDec 11, 2015 00:58226915
THE END OF ISIS [130 words]SANDRO LOEWEDec 10, 2015 14:47226907
let the US military offer ISIS a compromise [139 words]mythDec 8, 2015 19:45226888
some additional considerations [240 words]Arthur Pitz, Ph.D.Dec 8, 2015 12:58226878
Dabiq [83 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
Elisha benAbuyaDec 8, 2015 12:22226877
Dabiq [33 words]Elisha benAbuyaDec 12, 2015 09:58226877
Paris and Sinai [191 words]AlexDec 8, 2015 12:09226875
1Forget about ISIS [74 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
François GravelDec 8, 2015 07:14226869
1ISIS cannot be squashed [605 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
Michael SDec 8, 2015 02:58226858
I'm glad we agree; but "crushing" is easier said, than done [287 words]Michael SDec 12, 2015 07:13226858
1ISIS or its clones will take long time before they disappear [252 words]PrashantDec 7, 2015 22:34226855
Now you see me, Now you don't [388 words]P. PiperDec 9, 2015 16:24226855
Prashant, I agree with you entirely! [6 words]Michael SDec 10, 2015 15:29226855
Limited Light at the End of the Daish Tunnel [234 words]M ToveyDec 7, 2015 15:33226852
Squishy bugs. Oh my! [351 words]Michael SDec 10, 2015 17:35226852
Ezekiel 28:12 et sequiter [24 words]M ToveyDec 14, 2015 10:31226852
Things to come [313 words]Michael SDec 17, 2015 10:14226852
Regarding predictable predictions vis-à-vis Erdogan [115 words]FrankzDec 7, 2015 14:28226850
2The end of Daish [66 words]dhimmi no moreDec 7, 2015 13:32226849
1That may be.... [56 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
Ib1netmonDec 7, 2015 12:43226848
1ISIS/ISIL/DAESH Are NOT easy to defeat [59 words]Brian O' ReillyDec 7, 2015 09:05226846
1ISIS's strength [244 words]AnonDec 7, 2015 01:36226842
No signs of ISIS demise on the horizon yet! [24 words]JaladhiDec 6, 2015 19:53226838
1a poisonous rose by many other names [249 words]Charles MartelDec 6, 2015 17:46226836
ISIS [2 words]BorisDec 8, 2015 14:28226836
2ISIS won't self-destruct for a long time [786 words]StephenDec 6, 2015 15:02226832
ISIS [1 words]BorDec 8, 2015 14:34226832
ISIS' Imminent Demise? Even if they now have WMD? [1 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
jmwtcllcDec 6, 2015 12:34226830
Yes. Exactly. [37 words]Doug MayfieldDec 6, 2015 11:39226828
'small bug'...like Xenopsylla cheopis? [354 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
PaulDec 6, 2015 10:54226827
Learn From ISIS [267 words]DaveDec 6, 2015 10:17226826
Are you calling them "JV League"? [87 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
Haim ModianoDec 6, 2015 09:31226825
The Real Threat [167 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
BillDec 6, 2015 09:24226824
Agree with Dr Pipes but... [71 words]AnonDec 8, 2015 15:51226824
Unwinding Radical Islam [100 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
Solomon BalasDec 6, 2015 08:02226822
Wahhabism and oil, a toxic mix [57 words]Colin RoseDec 6, 2015 04:32226817
1ISIS' Imminent Demise [96 words]Avinoam Ben DorDec 6, 2015 01:28226815
The real threat. [7 words]steven LDec 5, 2015 23:22226814
ISIS [28 words]Janusz KowalikDec 5, 2015 22:44226813
1Wouldn't ground troops need to be deployed indefinitely? [89 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
Anon.Dec 5, 2015 17:24226812

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