69 million page views

Islamic Fascism Is An Oxymoron: It's Like A Yellow Blackboard!

Reader comment on item: More on the Term "Islamic Fascists"

Submitted by Allan E. Mallenbaum (United States), Aug 17, 2006 at 20:00

It is understandable that Muslims object to the term IslamoFascist, or any of its variants. It is not only objectionable; it is wrong.

For true accuracy, and to avoid offending Muslims, we must use the only correct term, "Islam."

Let's take an in-depth, analytical look at the "Fascist" appellation so glibly applied by President Bush and, of greater significance, by news commentators who should know better. Some of those who use the term actually try to define Fascism but they rarely understand what is meant by the term.

In an article in the 1932 Encyclopedia Italiana, written by Giovanni Gentile and attributed to Benito Mussolini, Fascism is described as a system, founded by Benito Mussolini on March 23, 1919, in which "The State not only is the authority which governs and molds individual wills with laws and values of spiritual life, but it is also the power which makes its will prevail abroad.... For the Fascist, everything is within the State and . . . neither individuals nor groups are outside the State.... For Fascism, the State is an absolute, before which individuals or groups are only relative...." This is the basic principle of Fascism. In Fascism, it's all about "the state."

"Islam," as is well-known, means "submission." Muslims submit to the will of their Allah alone, never to any man-made government. All secular governments, according to Islam, must derive their power from Allah, from the Qur'an, rather than from mere human concepts. How can human leaders, Islam inquires, exercise greater control than the "creator of the world?" How can a Fascist state exist under true Islam?

Mussolini, the guiding proponent of the Fascist philosophy, in a speech delivered on October 28, 1925, stated the following maxim which encapsulates the Fascist creed: "Tutto nello Stato, niente al di fuori dello Stato, nulla contro lo Stato." ("Everything in the State, nothing outside of the State, nothing against the State".) I don't think that anyone can argue that he or she is more of an expert on Fascism than Benito Mussolini himself!

So we understand that Islam, in its very essence, diametrically opposes the Fascist philosophy. The "State" is nothing in the tribal-universalist sect; Islam is everything. When Islam, the sect of submission, prevails over the entire planet, it teaches that all states will be subservient to the "True Faith," to Islam, to shari'a, to the Qur'an.

The key to rejecting any association between the two systems is simple: Fascism permits no religion to control any aspect of the state. Islam permits no state to control any aspect of the religion. The concept of Islamo-Fascism, when analyzed, is just a spoof, a joke, a Purim-spiel! I'm certain that the practice of denominating any group of Islamic terrorists as "Fascist" is offensive to all true Fascists.

The use of hyphenated terms merely lets Islam "off the hook." IslamoFascists can be made responsible for all the evil of Islam! We have to be honest. We have to get rid of these meaningless adjectives relating to Fascism, and let's look at the unadulterated truth: we're talking about Islam, not some hyphenated sect, just Plain Old Islam!

For those who can't bring themselves to the truth, who can't use the no-hyphen -Islam term, I suggest "totalitarian Islam" as a weak and imprecise substitute.

Islam is the sect which initiated the Third World War. Islam is the Terrorist sect attempting to subvert Western civilization. Islam alone is responsible for world terror. As practiced ab initio by their prophet. As practiced by Muslims today.

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".

Submit a comment on this item

<< Previous Comment      Next Comment >>

Reader comments (35) on this item

Title Commenter Date Thread
1Islamo-fascists and the duck! [37 words]dhimmi no moreFeb 16, 2015 16:54221110
Islam is a Misnomer [202 words]Tariq BeyFeb 25, 2015 17:18221110
2Another needy Muslim [1073 words]dhimmi no moreFeb 26, 2015 08:00221110
Islamofascist; what a bunch of tripe [86 words]R.J. ConnorsApr 8, 2008 20:54125121
Islamic Fascism [351 words]E. David LitvakNov 1, 2006 22:3765043
For Dr. Pipes: It seems that there is a madrassa in Queens, NY [234 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
dhimmi no moreAug 21, 2006 06:5853589
The term 'fascist' correctly applied to Bush is co-opted [61 words]LeeAug 19, 2006 18:4153478
Not politically correct. [156 words]Robert LynnAug 18, 2006 05:1553326
When asked why are all the terrorists Muslims [84 words]John PhilipsAug 18, 2006 01:0953307
Islamic Fascism Is An Oxymoron: It's Like A Yellow Blackboard! [586 words]Allan E. MallenbaumAug 17, 2006 20:0053281
It is Fascism in deed if not form [162 words]TiberusAug 18, 2006 22:3453281
You know a great deal, but are still wrong [186 words]AyanAug 19, 2006 16:5553281
"FASCISM" BY MUSLIMS IS DIFFERENT FROM FASCISM BY CHRISTIANS [110 words]Allan E. MallenbaumAug 20, 2006 18:0653281
Thanks for the lesson re: Fascism [66 words]InfidelAug 21, 2006 01:0153281
What matters is what they do, not what they say [496 words]Edward ChristieSep 1, 2006 22:2753281
SAME PAGE [64 words]Allan E. MallenbaumSep 2, 2006 20:2353281
on target... [67 words]donvanMay 28, 2008 11:1053281
Tautology, not oxymoron [19 words]SteveNov 27, 2008 23:2253281
Rebuttal: Tautology, Not Oxymoron [42 words]AllanNov 28, 2008 21:4653281
What to Call Them [114 words]Marc MayersonAug 17, 2006 16:5453259
I like the title "Islamists" too but it is too nice. [227 words]TiberiusAug 17, 2006 16:1353253
Islamic Socialism. [1659 words]RalphAug 16, 2006 20:4853145
Perhaps Islamic Supremacist is a better term? [159 words]K GreenAug 16, 2006 11:5453057
Islamofascists [51 words]YolandaAug 15, 2006 04:0352876
Really? [257 words]PCMadnessAug 15, 2006 23:0452876
Yolanda (rabina yukhaliha) and the kettle and the pot old cliche! [113 words]dhimmi no moreAug 30, 2006 13:1752876
Warped Logic [169 words]YolandaAug 31, 2006 13:3552876
Bush and his lack of respect for other cultures [89 words]YolandaAug 31, 2006 13:4352876
For Yolanda (rabina Yukhaliha) And more about the kettle and the pot [100 words]dhimmi no moreAug 31, 2006 19:1652876
For Yolanda (rabina Yukhaliha) And is islam a culture?part deux [4 words]dhimmi no moreAug 31, 2006 19:1752876
For Yolanda (rabina Yukhaliha) al-faylasoofa al-kabeera and Mr. Occam! [307 words]dhimmi no moreSep 1, 2006 07:1552876
Tyranny [73 words]YolandaSep 2, 2006 02:4052876
What is the historical thrust of Islam? Is that a benchmark to determine what is "normative" for Islam? [55 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
StephenAug 14, 2006 22:2652843
Benchmarks [365 words]Keith R. SnyderAug 18, 2006 20:2952843
"moderate" Islam vs AlQaeda - who has the bigger delta vs. historical Islam? [218 words]
w/response from Daniel Pipes
StephenAug 20, 2006 14:0452843

Comment on this item

Mark my comment as a response to Islamic Fascism Is An Oxymoron: It's Like A Yellow Blackboard! by Allan E. Mallenbaum

Email me if someone replies to my comment

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".

See recent outstanding comments.

Follow Daniel Pipes

Facebook   Twitter   RSS   Join Mailing List

All materials by Daniel Pipes on this site: © 1968-2024 Daniel Pipes. daniel.pipes@gmail.com and @DanielPipes

Support Daniel Pipes' work with a tax-deductible donation to the Middle East Forum.Daniel J. Pipes

(The MEF is a publicly supported, nonprofit organization under section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code.

Contributions are tax deductible to the full extent allowed by law. Tax-ID 23-774-9796, approved Apr. 27, 1998.

For more information, view our IRS letter of determination.)