Why are you promoting the propaganda of dictators?

Submitted by Schills (United States), Jul 13, 2012 at 19:07

Sara,

You seem to rather found of the use of "yet again". So let me say yet again that your analysis of complex social events and attributing the entire problem to Islam and the "tribal culture of the Middle East," not only misidentifies and oversimplifies the problem, but does not lead to any possible solutions. The current problems of the Middle East are principally related to economic stagnation and the suppression of non-violent political expression. This does not fit your belief that Islam is the problem so you ignore these issues. To bolster your position you cite the position of Jihadists, and "what the Imams are saying."

First, the Pew Research Center extensively researched the position of Muslims throughout the Middle East, Europe and the United States regarding violent attacks on civilians. The highest rate for rejecting violence against civilians was in Pakistan, not the West. If the position of Jihadists was the only correct position, then would would expect to see near universal agreement amongst Muslims supporting the Jihadist methodologies. This however is not the case.

Second, "what the Imams are saying," is a reflection of the views of the despotic governments who pay the Imams salaries and control what the Imams say from the pulpit. You have mentioned numerous times that the governments in the Middle East are blaming Israel, America, et al. in order to distract the populations from the problems those despots created. It therefore makes no season whatsoever to find these despots preferable to democratic elections.

Perhaps you do not follow news out of Egypt, but the generals, not the Muslim Brotherhood, are increasing their efforts to blame Israel and America for the continued pro-democracy demonstrates and unrest. If Egyptians were generally buying into the generals' propaganda, then why do they continue to focus their attention on the generals. People in the Middle East know that their despotic leaders are to blame for their problems. They have finally developed the courage to revolt. Why do you want to cling to the anti-Semitic and anti-Western propaganda promoted by the dictators of the Middle East to keep their people stagnate?

Dr. Pipes points out how the Middle East has changed over the course of his career studying it. Islam when he began his career is not the same force that it is today. If your analysis that Islam is the problem were correct, then Dr. Pipes would not have witnessed the rise of political Islamism supplanting traditional Islam.

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