Best yet Pipes interview

Submitted by Frank Verano (United States), Dec 16, 2003 at 15:29

Given, as Pipes says that:

.....I see militant Islam as a true successor of the fascist and communist movements, not just in its totalitarian methods but also in its cosmic goals. There is no way to accommodate any of these ideologies; they will either destroy the civilized world or be destroyed it. As Abraham Lincoln put it in 1838, "If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher."

Therefore, in weeding out the 'fifth column' I agree that we must: (as Pipes says)

.... tak(e) into account all factors – nationality, race, religion, and ideology – that are relevant to focusing in on likely perpetrators. This is plain common sense; does one look for rapist suspects among women? Given that the ranks of militant Islam are made up of Muslims and only very rarely (I can think of precisely two examples) do they knowingly receive support from non-Muslims, this unfortunately implies an imperative to focus on Muslims. I regret having to draw this conclusion, but only when we are ready to accept the necessity of such enhanced attention will we be serious about waging war on terrorism

However, are we doomed to repeat the McCarthy era or this time, will we really see:

(That ) ...... "There is no escaping the unfortunate fact that Muslim government employees in law enforcement, the military and the diplomatic corps need to be watched for connections to terrorism, as do Muslim chaplains in prisons and the armed forces. Muslim visitors and immigrants must undergo additional background checks. Mosques require a scrutiny beyond that applied to churches and temples."

Frank Verano

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