Sayyid Qutb in an Egyptian prison before his 1966 execution by Gamal Abdul Nasser
I have been thinking about ISIS lately given events and it reminded me of Lawrence Wright's The Looming Tower (it has been a while since I read it) and Sayyid Quṭb (an influential leader in the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood which in turn inspired al Qaeda and ISIS). All draw influences from the life of Mohammed and medieval Islam and the Khawarij. Shia Islam has its own similar radical elements. While there are difference and clashes (especially between Shia and Sunni) among these various groups, they all apparently share an obsession with the United States and the perceived seduction of the west. As much as many of our politicians would like to pretend otherwise, this is a clash of civilizations (or rather Western Civilization and Radical Islam) and unfortunately we have to deal with it. So will the Russians, the Chinese, and the rest of the world. Ultimately, Islam is going to have to reform itself. Given the nature of Islam today, that's not going to be an easy transition.
Bill Clinton failed to recognize the threat that al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden posed which led to 9/11. George Bush certainly made serious mistakes during his presidency (I think we all recognize Iraq could have been handled far better and a lot of the occupation problems experienced were foreseeable and ignored initially mostly due to hubris by his advisors). Still, Bush (thanks to our military) managed to turn things around before turning Iraq over to Barack Obama. Barack Obama (with substantial assistance of Hillary Clinton and John Kerry) let Iraq slip into chaos and essentially created the vacuum and conditions that allowed ISIS to flourish.
We can differ on how to deal with this, but one thing I am absolutely sure of is mass immigration from the Islamic world to the west is a very bad idea. What Merkel and Obama are doing is suicidal. Let's hope France's recent commitment does not diminish. Democrats in the USA (unfortunately) are doubling down. Let's support Republicans in blocking this. As Rush Limbaugh notes, Liberals make excuses for ISIS (ignoring that ISIS would slaughter them first if given the chance). Rush and Walid Phares say Obama's whole strategy is aligning with Iran (good luck with that).
EBL: Think of it as a virus (or maybe cancer is a better analogy), the left certainly does not get it, ISIS claims American blood is best, So where's our safe space again?, and Paris France, Friday the 13th
Mark Steyn: We are all wearing short skirts and asking for it, The ISIS Octopus, On Message: Nothing to Do With Islam, Croquembouche Lie, People Die, Imagine there's no, Imagination, The Leader of the Free World and his Universal Values, Cool Civilizational Death With Goes Viral and The Barbarians Are Already Inside and Their Are No Gates
Camp of the Saints: On Paris and The Lie As Our Form of Existence
RIP Diesel
Instapundit: Virginia Postel: ISIS takes glamour seriously, so should we. BTW, I focused on hero dog Diesel above because I know Islamists will be apoplectic about a dog getting more attention than one of their depraved "martyrs"
TOM: The Worst President Ever and Terror Raid: Police kill two, arrest seven in Saint Denis, France (brave police dog killed by woman in bomb vest)
Breaking: Saint Denis neighbor siege for possible missing terrorists in last Friday's attack?
Instapundit: Obama sticking to strategy that gave us Paris, Virginia Postel: Terror at the Mall, could Democrats break ranks on refugee fight (if enough voter outrage is out there, you betcha), Chuck Schumer says we need a pause on Syrian refugees, Democrats are criticizing Obama's remarks
Regular Right Guy: Shepard Smith is supposed to be a news reader, not a commentary guy
8 ISIS suspects arrested trying to pose as refugees...
AoSHQ: Obama Administration admits it will be hard to vet Syrians...but Obama gets what he wants
Rush Limbaugh: Obama does not know a religious test for refugees is required as a matter of law
Letting in Hundreds of Thousands of Syrian Refugees: What Could Go Wrong?
Good points.
ReplyDeleteIslam is still in the same state it was when it was founded and most of the clerics are tools of various political movements which are more interested in redirecting the people's discontent at home to issues abroad.