Finding the motive for horrible acts

Submitted by Nabeel (United States), Oct 30, 2002 at 22:20

Dr Pipes, please note the following:

1 - John Muhammad is a member of the Nation of Islam and not the Islamic community as a whole. Non-fanatical Muslims (which represent the overwhelming majority of Muslims) do not recognize the Nation of Islam based on its ideology that Elijah Mohammad is the rebirth of the Prophet Muhammad AND its stance on dispising Americans and Jews.

2 - After referring to the term jihad, you often explain it as a "holy war", which is a grossly mistaken translation. Please realize that it translates to "struggle", as in the internal struggle for Muslims to remain pure to their faith.

The explanation of Muhammad as being a foot soldier for militant Islam is presented as being an overlooked but obvious conclusion -faith-based hate is not the reason for his horrific acts of violence, it's an excuse. John Muhammad is a loser. He's led a less than stellar life that included a sub-par performance in the armed forces, a failed marriage and unemployment. Today it has become customary to blaim hostile Islamists, after all, Islamism is like fascism and communism before it has become our gravest threat to survival. However, as difficult as it may be to accept, we must come to the fact that there may never be reasons for why some of us turn to unthinkable horror - just excuses.

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