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Maybe physical, but not mental inaction?

Reader comment on item: Syria: Arguing for U.S. Inaction

Submitted by Ron Thompson (United States), Feb 25, 2012 at 15:02

I agree with Dr Pipes' sentiment, "better the devil we don't know", not only because of the awfulness of the Assad regime and the fact it has been the key ally of Iran, but because it is unseemly for the West to just sit back and do nothing while people are slaughtered, even if gratitude is unlikely to follow any help we do give.

Because I believe that most majority Muslim countries from Morocco to Bangladesh are on a path of implosion, I also agree that we should strive for physical inaction and a "detached watchfulness" rather than getting involved in these senseless struggles. And we should certainly avoid anything like "war as social work"' in countries with populations who, because of their religion, are simply unable to form functional civil societies that benefit their people, as we have graphically seen in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan.

But rather than being mentally inactive, I believe this should be a heightened period of study as to just what's wrong with the entire Muslim world. We should be having a great bi-partisan debate on whether it's reasonable to have any relations with the Muslim world which don't raise questions about the core element of the identity of Muslim populations, namely their religion.

Although our leadership throughout most of the 20th century didn't have any taboo about questioning the core of the Communist belief system as it came into existence and practice in the Soviet Union, Eastern Europe, China and elsewhere, for some reason even our neocons and Republicans, not to mention Democrats and just about all our academics seem to share a deep taboo on asking whether the religion of Mohammed is compatible with a peaceful international order in the age of globalization.

Was Churchill right in 1899 when he said, "There is no more retrograde force in the world" than the religion of Mohammed.?

When one reads the writings of Hassan Bana (1906-42) and Sayyid Qutb (!906-66), recognized as the two most influential propagandists of modern Islamic terrorism, with their calls for the "Allah's universal empire" and the "elimination of the reign of man (and) human laws" in favor of "divine law" (sharia), are we wise to ignore this intellectual force not only throughout the Muslim world, but in the huge Muslim communities already embedded in all European countries? Are we to offer no counterarguments, but merely prattle on about the 'great' religon of Islam being "hijacked by fringe elements, when the behavior of Muslim spokesmen everywhere tends to mirror the views of the so-called extremists?

Are we to abdicate the field of intellectual debate and combat when the loudest voices of Islam are making broader demands for an Islamic hegemony over human affairs than at any time since the last, imperialist decade of Muhammed's life and the great conquests of the following decades?

On a micro scale, have we become so timid that when a few Korans are accidentally burned in Afghanistan and a score of people are killed, including Americans ambushed in their offices, we apologize again and again to them, ratrher than indignantly pointng out that the believers of no religion or sect in the West - or anywhere else in the world - would have this barbaric response.

Are we to remain forever silent toward a religion whose most holy expression of piety seems to be murderous, indiscriminate violence, which is exactly what was called for by Muhammed originally, and what is called for now by the religion's most popualr contemporary "spiritual" leaders?

So, physical detachment, yes, as much as possible. But mental silence in the face of this gerat clash of belief systems? Surely not.

Ron Thompson

Submitting....

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Reader comments (52) on this item

Title Commenter Date Thread
1Travesty [50 words]steratosMay 2, 2012 00:50195380
3The Cold War [51 words]Ayla KosebeyApr 1, 2012 15:32194902
1Kudos to Daniel Pipes [9 words]ZiggyMar 17, 2012 16:12194464
1arab leagues or gcc countries tools of western imperialism [99 words]syed mohammad aliMar 4, 2012 05:17193872
1Westeern Imperialism No longer a Valid Excuse [265 words]M. ToveyMar 5, 2012 18:54193872
3So simple -So Basic [74 words]Michael Hanni MorcosMar 3, 2012 12:53193840
1Focusing on what we are FOR [243 words]DemsciFeb 29, 2012 08:27193768
7What will they remember? What do I remember? [345 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
JeffFeb 28, 2012 13:26193747
1selective memory [105 words]roger smithFeb 29, 2012 04:04193747
Not true about Kosovo [17 words]Pez DispenserMar 10, 2012 16:34193747
I think we finally found that tiny minority of extremists. [88 words]JeffMar 10, 2012 18:25193747
Well said. [59 words]Magician of OzMar 19, 2012 21:35193747
1consistent moral transparent approach [50 words]mythFeb 28, 2012 13:01193746
2The situation calls for a moral position by the USA [74 words]GabrielFeb 27, 2012 12:58193711
2Jasser and Syria [108 words]Abdul AmeerFeb 27, 2012 11:29193707
Dr. Pipes, why are you convinced of an Islamist takeover in Syria? [98 words]Pez DispenserFeb 27, 2012 04:26193705
2consistency? [212 words]trans-parereFeb 26, 2012 22:52193700
For Americas Sake. For America. [159 words]Jay1Feb 26, 2012 22:22193699
2Syria, US, Brotherhood and Jasser [19 words]steven LFeb 26, 2012 20:00193695
3Reasons to side with Daniel Pipes [69 words]Stephen BlantonFeb 26, 2012 19:49193694
Right on i.e. your observations and rebuttal IMO [244 words]skbFeb 26, 2012 19:31193693
I Like It [8 words]LizFeb 26, 2012 19:13193692
Iran in the shadows, spotlight on Syria [139 words]mythFeb 26, 2012 19:04193691
We should help the Syrian people survive their tyrant [179 words]MichaelFeb 26, 2012 18:16193690
1Hear, hear [80 words]Peter HerzFeb 26, 2012 15:38193685
Another thing [42 words]Peter HerzFeb 28, 2012 05:55193685
Keeping an eye on Syria [18 words]Nathan KravetzFeb 26, 2012 11:52193680
Let them fight it out! [18 words]mary ConnorFeb 26, 2012 06:20193665
U.S. inaction [41 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
changenFeb 26, 2012 06:20193664
Dissent [102 words]Herbert CaronFeb 26, 2012 05:40193662
Short term thinking [58 words]AJFeb 26, 2012 03:44193658
Syrian Free Forces & Syrian National Council are not good [20 words]PatrickFeb 26, 2012 03:43193657
What is the real goal? [115 words]Adina Kutnicki, IsraelFeb 26, 2012 02:43193656
Syria a friend of ours? [116 words]Nenette GrunbergFeb 25, 2012 21:48193649
US has caused millions of deaths by its policy of Regime support. [101 words]IamJosephFeb 25, 2012 20:03193648
1Arguing of US inaction [179 words]Nelson D'SilvaFeb 25, 2012 19:27193645
1Hear, hear [11 words]Peter HerzFeb 25, 2012 19:14193643
Agree 100% with your arguments [50 words]Salomon MizrahiFeb 25, 2012 18:36193642
3No consistency of U.S. policy [99 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
saraFeb 25, 2012 17:55193639
Why the United States will Not Solve Syria - Damascus is a Lost Cause [222 words]M. ToveyFeb 27, 2012 14:10193639
1Mr. Pipes could not be more right here. [40 words]DanFeb 25, 2012 17:48193638
Agree 100% with your arguments [51 words]Salomon MizrahiFeb 25, 2012 16:07193637
7Maybe physical, but not mental inaction? [610 words]Ron ThompsonFeb 25, 2012 15:02193636
Thompson's Important viewpoint [122 words]Herbert CaronFeb 26, 2012 06:05193636
You are right on the dot [272 words]PrashantFeb 25, 2012 14:49193635
Agree and good analysis! [20 words]WestieFeb 25, 2012 14:48193634
Syria: Arguing for U.S. Inaction [71 words]roland sarkisFeb 25, 2012 14:06193633
Exodus 14:14 [35 words]Gudrun EussnerFeb 25, 2012 13:35193632
2Wake-up time for America [112 words]Rebecca MouldsFeb 25, 2012 12:41193630
As usual, I believe Daniel has hit the nail on the head... [18 words]Gerald A. HonigmanFeb 25, 2012 12:04193629
1Take Syria out of the equation [61 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
Larry LevineFeb 25, 2012 11:56193628
5Alawites might become future allies in case of partition [109 words]Henk TwerdaFeb 26, 2012 15:34193628

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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 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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