Banning Islam?

Submitted by Dan Rusen (Canada), Aug 29, 2007 at 14:12

Dr. Pipes,

In your article you declare that banning Islamism and 'radical' Islam would be the answer to much of the threat the West now faces. I think this would be only a disingenuous stopgap. Besides all the political correctness that is the REAL problem in the West, it is safe to say that few in the West have the guts to stand up and really fight to secure our thousand years of progressive Judaeo-Christian culture.

The prior outrage similar to 9/11 was the bombing of Pearl Harbor, which set in motion a unified determination in America to avenge that act. All the stops were pulled out, all the potential enemies were interned, and some thirteen million American men were inducted into the armed forces, willing to put a stop to all forms of Fascism everywhere. Add to that a similar number of Brits and twenty-five million Russians. Racist charicatures of the enemy showed up in cartoons and magazines and posters and movies at every turn, without the slightest regard for hurt feelings. That is the mindset needed to confront a worldwide menace.

And now something else to consider: Any Muslim living anywhere, whether he is 'radical' or peaceful is at the mercy of Al Qaeda. What Muslim would have the guts, if ordered by them, to refuse their bidding? Just banning madrassas, certain parts of the Koran, or trying to halt the odd jihadist at our airports is not going to accomplish anything. Look what terrorists have done to Greece, setting half the country on fire. Terrorists have ony to change their focus to our water supply, our power grids, our ships, our trains, or other parts of our infrastructure. It's a miracle that they haven't already done this much, let alone set off a 'dirty' bomb.

Today in America and elsewhere even after 9/11 there are apologists for Islamics everywhere, most notably on our college campuses, who hate America or who fear insulting the Arabs, and thus losing much of our hydrocarbon based economy. Indeed there are fewer than two hundred thousand westerners under arms in the middle east, and there is so much hand wringing over the loss of several thousand soldiers that half the country wants to quit.. Compared to the half million American deaths in WWII this is still a very small price to pay; yet it underscores our lack of resolve. Today the West can't even agree to secure its borders.

Freedom, we are taught, requires constant vigilance and sacrifice.The West must grow up and get serious about this threat; and face this ugly reality. Unless and until America sets aside the quest for wealth and perpetual adolescence, the lessons of history and our liberal heritage will go mostly unappreciated. Disaster looms large on the very near hoizon.

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