Richard Warnick‘As you kill, you will be killed’
President Bush and the rest of the right wing never get tired of telling us that America is hated by religious fanatics who can’t stand the ideas of freedom and democracy. Considering how many right-wingers are religious fanatics themselves, they may be projecting their own intolerance on others.
Although there are a minority who truly hate freedom and want to go back to the Middle Ages, clearly very few of the world’s 1.25 billion Muslims (19.2 percent of humanity) would ever want to live under a Salafist regime of the type envisioned by al Qaeda or the Taliban. If they did, we’d be in a situation not unlike the Cold War– facing an ideological enemy equipped with significant military power, including nuclear weapons.
That is not the strategic situation the USA is facing, despite what neocon proponents of “The Long War” want us to believe. Whatever their real reasons, they want to justify aggressive war on a succession of Muslim countries. They may not understand, or care, that our nation’s reputation is being severely damaged and that terrorist acts are inspired by our own reckless attacks more than any religious-ideological conflict.
This is just anecdotal information, but consider the evidence presented yesterday in a British court. Six alleged terrorists accused of plotting to bring down transatlantic airliners with homemade explosives recorded videos denouncing the West. The alleged plot may have been impractical, but their hatred was real enough.
“I say to the nonbelievers, as you bomb, you will be bombed. As you kill, you will be killed,” said Umar Islam, 29, as he angrily wagged a finger at the camera, denouncing the U.S. and Britain for their role in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Palestinian territories.
Another defendant, Abdulla Ahmed Ali, 27, predicted waves of new attacks on the United States and Britain.
“We will take our revenge and anger, ripping amongst your people and scattering the people … decorating the streets,” he said.
Revenge. Because American and British soldiers are occupying Iraq and Afghanistan and killing innocent people.
Almost seven years later, I wonder how many of us know what the 9/11 attacks were intended to accomplish. Al Qaeda’s leaders realized that their vision of a medieval Islamic caliphate had limited appeal. They needed something else to garner mass support. It was Ayman al-Zawahiri who proposed a strategy of direct attack on the United States.
Zawahiri impressed upon Bin Laden the importance of understanding the American mentality. The American mentality is a cowboy mentality– if you confront them with their identity theoretically and practically they will react in an extreme manner. In other words, America with all its resources and establishments will shrink into a cowboy when irritated successfully. They will then elevate you and this will satisfy the Muslim longing for a leader who can successfully challenge the West.
Both Zawahiri and bin Laden understand the powerful concept of defensive jihad as an inspiration and justification. Islamic tradition requires that when Muslims are attacked, then it becomes obligatory for all Muslims to defend against the attack. Al Qaeda’s intent was to goad the USA into making attacks and killing Muslims. It worked. As Jordan’s King Abdullah II has pointed out, our post-9/11 reaction has contributed to the empowerment of terrorist groups. The would-be terrorists on trial now in the UK see themselves as part of a defensive jihad, which has resulted in more than 10,000 terrorist incidents since 9/11, by one website’s count.
Defensive jihad is an example of what military strategists call a “force multiplier.” Millions of people opposed to Osama bin Laden and everything he stands for are now nevertheless dedicated to fighting Americans, particularly in Iraq.
In a speech today in Arizona, Senator John McCain demonstrated that he has no understanding of this, instead claiming that our biggest national security problem is caused by Islamic extremists opposed to our values. That’s nonsense. Most people in the world admire American principles, but they are angry at our government for acting in total disregard of them.
Are we defending freedom and democracy against more than a billion implacable ideological enemies? Or can we rescue America’s security and reputation by not attacking and occupying Muslim countries?
April 5th, 2008 at 11:46 am
In response to the very fine post above: As ye sow, so shall ye reap. Twa ever thus.
Now, my personal situ: None of us really know how far into our individual business the admin has inserted itself, it may be so all pervasive that it seems invisible. That said, my problem may be something to do with the oneutah site. I am no longer able to navigate given what I presume to be a plethora of ‘cookies’. If it is Cliffs’ choice to attatch germs, cookies or what-not to the interaction going on here, I wish he would stop, as I’ve had a great deal of good time and education here over the years.
If it’s homeland security, or something else, that’s too bad because I’m essentially frozen out of this site and the wonderful interaction I’ve experienced.
It may also be my clucker of a computer, in which case I take it all back.
RSVP? Than
April 5th, 2008 at 7:35 pm
RMWarnick
Your title is plagiarizing Jesus Christ “He who lives by the sword, will die by the sword”.
April 5th, 2008 at 10:16 pm
If only President Bush had ever read the Bible…
April 5th, 2008 at 11:04 pm
A very sad day, Charlton Heston has passed away.
April 5th, 2008 at 11:23 pm
Good riddance!!
April 5th, 2008 at 11:50 pm
Albert, you liberals are such haters.
April 5th, 2008 at 11:59 pm
So Ed Asner outlasted the old curmudgeon, huh? Better hide the body or Michael Moore may take the rifle from his cold, dead hands.
April 6th, 2008 at 12:25 am
That’s right, Ken, and we particularly hate things like illegal and unjust wars waged against sovereign nations that posed no threat to our security.
April 6th, 2008 at 12:43 am
Albert. Isn’t it amazing how you liberals care more about our enemy’s sovereignty than our own.
April 6th, 2008 at 12:24 pm
Ken:
Pray tell, just who is our enemy and precisely what is its sovereign boundary?
April 6th, 2008 at 4:20 pm
All peoples that do not adopt WB and IMF monetary systems…, and do not concur with compound monetary interest as a basis of all economy, despite this being being expressly prohibited by the God of Abrahams’ law, are our enemies.
Really they are declared enemies by the managers of international banking, and the democratically erected leaders that do as is demanded by the cartel.
All our enemies, are the enemies of our system of usury. If you do not agree, or become monetarily unproductive, you too, are an enemy of the declared system.
Useless eaters shall not be allowed. It’s what for dinner.
April 6th, 2008 at 9:10 pm
Thanks, Glenn! How you be doing?
Come visit sometime - last day at Alta just around the corner!
April 7th, 2008 at 9:31 am
So Albert O. who then are you?
You can’t be Jim, as he is in San Francisco, and isn’t around to invite me. I don’t really know anyone else but Cliff in SLC really, so by process of elimination Albert O. must be Cliff. Unless I am missing something. Mail me your identity at skimantas.com. cheers unknown person that would invite me.
April 8th, 2008 at 12:25 am
caveat:
I’ve been having some problems with posting myself, but it’s OK now. I think there may be something wrong with the spam software. If you’re having trouble with the site locking up, I’m thinking it might stop as soon as the Bush getting booed video moves off the bottom of the blog. The top video works OK, but the bottom one is screwed up.
April 8th, 2008 at 9:08 am
Thanks Larry, it does seem to have unclogged.
As for the bush video being pushed of the bottom of the page…Oh were the Bush administration shoved out and to the bottom of the sea…but I really wouldn’t wish that on the whales, starfish or coral and the like!
April 8th, 2008 at 12:27 pm
Yeah, Bush would see the whales, starfish and coral as an income opportunity and destroy all of them before losing his ass and having to be bailed out by the Bin Ladin family. His dad is too cheap to help out, even after getting all that money from reverend moon.
Strange days have found us.
~Jim Morrison