The further to the left or the right you move, the more your lens on life distorts.

Saturday, September 27, 2014

A Time for Clarity, Part 1

This is the first of a 3-part series of posts.

First, it was the Wahabbi sect of Islam, originating in what is now Saudi Arabia in the 18th century, and today, providing money, education, and influence to grow Islamist doctrine worldwide. From Wikipedia:
Wahhabism (Arabic: وهابية‎, Wahhābiyyah) or Wahhabi mission[1] (Arabic: ألدعوة ألوهابية‎, al-Da'wa al-Wahhābiyyah ) is a religious movement or sect or form[2] of Sunni Islam[3][4][5] variously described as "orthodox", "ultraconservative",[6] "austere",[2] "fundamentalist",[7] "puritanical"[8] (or "puritan"),[9] an Islamic "reform movement" to restore "pure monotheistic worship",[10] or an "extremist pseudo-Sunni movement".[11] Adherents often object to the term Wahhabi or Wahhabism as derogatory, and prefer to be called Salafi or muwahhid.[12][13][14]

... The movement is centered on the principle of Tawhid,[19] or the "uniqueness" and "unity" of God.[17] The alliance between followers of ibn Abd al-Wahhab and Muhammad bin Saud's successors (the House of Saud) created the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia—where Mohammed bin Abd Al-Wahhab's teachings are state-sponsored and the dominant form of Islam[2][20]—and continues to this day.

The majority of the Gulf Cooperation Council's Wahhabis are from Qatar, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia.[21] 46.87% of Qataris[21] and 44.8% of Emiratis are Wahhabis.[21] 5.7% of Bahrainis are Wahhabis and 2.17% of Kuwaitis are Wahhabis.[21] Wahhabis are the "dominant minority" in Saudi Arabia.[22] There are 4 million Saudi Wahhabis since 22.9% of Saudis are Wahhabis (concentrated in Najd).[21]
Western intelligence and media sources repeatedly report that Wahhabi petrodollars are used to fund terror groups, including al Qaeda. Note that Barack Obama (and his predecessors) name Qatar and Saudi Arabia as "allies" and "friends." Today, our leadership claims that countries with the significant Wahabbi populations will help in the fight against ISIS (The Islamic State).

But the Wahabbis are not alone. During the past century, it was the Muslim Brotherhood who spread Islamist doctrine. Again from Wikipedia:
The Society of the Muslim Brothers (Arabic: جماعة الإخوان المسلمين‎), shortened to the Muslim Brotherhood (الإخوان المسلمون al-Ikhwān al-Muslimūn), is a transnational Islamist organization which was founded in Egypt in 1928 by the Islamic scholar and schoolteacher Hassan al-Banna.[1][2][3][4] The motto of the Brotherhood was traditionally, "Believers are but Brothers". That was expanded into a five-part slogan: "Allah is our objective; the Qur'an is the Constitution; the Prophet is our leader; jihad is our way; death for the sake of Allah is our wish." [5] It began as a Pan-Islamic, religious, and social movement. The Muslim Brotherhood had an estimated two million members by the end of World War II.[6][7] Evidence of its vast influence was clear, with more than 2,000 branches all over the country and 2,000 societies for charity and social services. It ran health clinics, sports clubs, schools and other educational institutes, mosques and Islamic centres, and had a presence of 10,000 army volunteers in Palestine.[8] Its ideas had gained supporters throughout the Arab world and influenced other Islamist groups with its "model of political activism combined with Islamic charity work".[9] In 2012, it became the first democratically elected political party in Egypt, but it is considered a terrorist organization by the governments of Bahrain,[10][11] Egypt, Russia, Syria, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates.[12][13][14][15] However, the Brotherhood insists it is a peaceful organisation, pointing to its democratic elections, and has consistently renounced violence.[16][17] Its top leader is on record as saying that the group "condemns violence and violent acts".[18]
The Muslim Brotherhood (MB) may insist whatever it likes, but Takkiya (dishonesty toward infidels to further a Muslim's goals) is a tenet of Islam, and the claim of non-violence is belied by the many radical groups the MB has spawned. Of course, many on the Left (including Barack Obama), grasping for any reason not to see reality, argue that the MB is a force for "moderation" in the Muslim World. This is wishful thinking at best, and might more appropriately be labeled delusional thinking when one considers the trajectory of the MB and its spawn.

Out of the Muslim Brotherhood grew three Islamic terror organizations—Hamas, Hezballah and, of course, their cousin, al Qaeda, all virulently anti-Western, all thoroughly Islamist, and all bent on violence, terrorism, and conquest of the "infidel."

But that's just the beginning. In Afghanistan, we've seen the rise and fall and rise yet again of the Taliban, an Islamist army that uses 7th century Quranic rules (Sharia Law) to terrorize the populace in general and woman and Christians in particular—anyone who won't bow to their will. As Barack Obama exited Afghanistan, the Taliban returned, and so did its terror methods.

But wait. As Obama left Iraq with no status of forces agreement, another Islamist army, ISIS, began its reign of terror. Christians were targets for extinction, woman were brutally subjugated, beheading became commonplace. The "Islamic State" was born.

As a toxic side show, we also see the Islamic terror group, Boko Haram, in northeast Nigeria, Darul Islam and Jemaah Islamiyah in Indonesia, al-Shabaab in North Africa, the Uyghur ethnic group in China, and literally dozens of other Islamist clone groups worldwide. And now we learn about the Shadow Group, Khorasan, that targets the west specifically (as if that's something new).

Robert Spencer, one of the Western World's leading authorities on Jihadi groups and doctrine, reports that there have been well over 23,000 Islamist terror attacks worldwide since 9/11/2001. With each passing decade, Islamist groups have grown in size and reach within the broader population of Islamic countries.

Our bumbling Secretary of State, John Kerry, pushes the prevailing narrative that “Muslim scholars are outraged about the Islamic State’s brutality and perversion of Islam.” Okay then, scholars are "outraged." Islam is perverted by a literal reading of the Quran. Sharia Law is, what? Anti-Islamic?

But back to the scholars. I haven't seen many "scholars" speaking out in the main stream media, very few op-eds, almost no meaningful interviews, even fewer opinion pieces or speeches that express "outrage," but I'll take Kerry at his word. Problem is, there are an awful lot of Muslims (1.6 billion according to Pew Research) who aren't "scholars." Exactly what are they doing to combat Islamist thought and actions? In fact, would a non-trivial percentage of the 1.6 billion prefer not to combat Islamist thought and actions? What are Muslim leaders doing to show that they disapprove of Islamist terrorism, what are Islamic armies doing to combat it? What are Imam's doing to condemn Islamist thought in their Mosques. What information are Islamic intelligence agencies sharing with the West? What are everyday Muslims doing to excise this "cancer" (Barack Obama's phrase) from their community?

If we are to believe that Islam is benign—the religion of peace—the West can reasonably expect detailed answers to these questions.

Part 2 can be found here.