Natural instincts vs. How we 'should' behave

Submitted by Patricia Allison (United States), May 18, 2004 at 11:15

Dear Mr. Pipes,
As I read your very interesting piece today, I thought, now why does that sound so familiar? Then I realized that I had submitted a post on JihadWatch on the l7th about the same subject. You answered at least one of my concerns. Great minds......
Best regards,
Patricia Allison

Quote: "There are cells in which the Moroccans are well integrated into the population,...So they do not seem suspicious. They work. They have kids. They have fixed addresses. They pay the rent. The networks are dispersed throughout Europe and are very autonomous."

This is what I fear emerging suddenly here in the US: people who seem so normal, so peaceful, people of any one of several nationalities, including American, suddenly committing terrorist acts. Are we ready for that or will we be shocked and in disaray? And,when these horrors begin, how should frightened citizens be expected to behave toward Muslims in general?
Even though I have never been personally bitten by a pit bull, I have read enough reports about those who have been mauled and killed by them, that I instinctively give any dog of that breed a wide berth. Even when their owners assure me that their beloved pet has never and WOULD never do any thing to hurt anyone, I will never trust a pit bull again.
How will instinct come into play when people here have been blown to bits at the bus stop and the guilty prove to be Muslim? We need to be advised on how to deal with those instincts before horrendous events calls them into being. It's easy to say, 'innocent until proven guilty' as long as the 'proof' doesn't mean your life has been taken. Easy to say Islam is a peaceful religion until Islamists murder someone on camera. Easy to say, don't blame every Muslim for what a 'few' are doing - but what is one to do 'in reality' with the fear and the anger?
But as usual, we will wait until the crisis occurs to even talk about this uncomfortable situation, and as the articles states:

"The Madrid bombings finally have forced the Europeans to make their investigations more serious... But we are victims of laws and guarantees that protect the rights of individuals at the expense of cracking down against organized crime." And organized Islamism.

Posted by patricia at May 17, 2004 09:32 AM

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