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Don't be delusional
Reader comment on item: War against Radical Islamists

Submitted by Sam Lahiri (United States), Jun 17, 2002 at 18:05

One of Osama Bin Laden's goals behind the Sep 11 strike was to cripple the financial system of US. We heard him boasting in one of the tapes that the US stock market had lost a few trillion dollars in terms of its market value after Sep 11. So, I take great pleasure in noting that Lou Dobbs, a well respected financial reporter and CNN moneyline anchor is trying to put things in perspective by setting the right tone for this war. I am deeply disappointed at the seeming distinction the two other guests 'Mr. Gerges' and 'Prof Deeb' were trying to make between 'radical Islamists' and 'Islamists'. As Dr Pipes rightly pointed out, a radical and a non radical Islamist have the same goal in mind. They both dream of a totalitarian Islamic world, which does not preclude the possibility that a non radical muslim will take up arms or take recourse to violent means whenever he or she thinks is strategically appropiate. Believing that they are two different breeds is self delusional and there is really a very thin line between the two.

I want to remind everybody that most of the hijackers from Sept 11 came into this country as students and looked pretty harmless from outside without any criminal past of any kind. It would have been difficult to fit them in a description of so called 'radical Islamists'. In the same way, some would probably seem more like an academic than befitting the description of a radical Islamist. How does one really finds out who is who ? - only by casting an wide net of intelligence. Weighing political correctness every step of the way, even in defining whom the war is against, would only take us down in this war aginst 'Islamists'.

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 (26) on this item

Title By Date
Some perspective and statistics [1336 words]TCNov 25, 2008 11:35
Radical Islamist [210 words]HarjitJun 12, 2008 15:29
An Indian "moderate" Islamist [113 words]Arun GuptaJun 25, 2002 20:02
I see it clearly now. Thanks, Dr. Pipes! [31 words]Stevie ForteJun 25, 2002 15:07
Know Thine Enemy [205 words]Robert ArsenaultJun 19, 2002 19:33
What about "Palestine" [240 words]Jean MartinJun 19, 2002 18:36
re Palestinians Radical Islamists? [80 words]Tamara SternJun 18, 2002 12:21
Islam and freedom [305 words]Glenn KlotzJun 17, 2002 21:41
⇒ Don't be delusional [298 words]Sam LahiriJun 17, 2002 18:05
Devout Muslims [122 words]Mordecai J. GoldJun 17, 2002 17:17
Islam by any other name is still Islam [255 words]D WJun 17, 2002 16:16
Moderate Muslims [168 words]Nazia KhanJun 17, 2002 14:06
the only way to deter the martyrs [108 words]alan fleckJun 17, 2002 10:36
The West Islamised? [101 words]Leonard SokolicJun 17, 2002 08:58
Militant Islam is Evil Totalitarian Thinking Merely Hiding Behind a New Disguise [91 words]Stephen CarlileJun 17, 2002 07:01
Violence Renounced? [52 words]Sol ShalitJun 16, 2002 17:31
SLOGANS AND DEFINITIONS [435 words]DAVID M. DASTYCHJun 16, 2002 16:23
militant islam is not radical islam [459 words]adelJun 16, 2002 13:23
There is no "moderate" Islamist [696 words]Timothy Farrell, PhDJun 16, 2002 11:22
Radical Non-Violent Islam [76 words]Israel PickholtzJun 16, 2002 10:50
Radical Islamists [92 words]Carl BitzerJun 16, 2002 09:51
war on clerics [33 words]john stirlingAug 18, 2006 10:31
Islamist vs Militant Islamist [97 words]Mark TylerJun 16, 2002 09:06
Moderate Islamists? [141 words]R AbramsJun 16, 2002 07:28
Radical Islam [122 words]Minna FeligJun 16, 2002 05:17
Anywhere in the world + Islam+ muslims = war and destruction [129 words]notimpressedFeb 17, 2009 10:42

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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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