a key element in our struggle

Submitted by Charles Martel (United States), Apr 26, 2015 at 15:11

If, as Dr. Pipes suggests, the possibility exists that the tide of expansionist Islam can be rolled back absent violent struggle, then a paradigm shift on our side of the line must perforce occur. One factor driving the growth of groups like ISIS is an intrinsic cohesion in Islam that now appears to be lacking in Western society. Those people know who they are. They know what they believe. Tragically, they've heard nothing so far to lead them to believe ours really is the proper side of the line.

So what do 'we' stand for? Why is our Judeo-Christian, secular, pluralistic society superior? Where are the voices among us trumpeting our passion and pride in Socrates, Immanual Kant, Martin Luther, Thomas Paine, Thomas Jefferson, Golda Meir and others?

We're lost in this wilderness because the past fifty years have taught us that notions like pride and nationalism are anachronistic at best. After WWII, as the West transitioned toward secularism we'd have done well to insist upon the perpetuation of this country's bedrock ideals in each and all of our citizens. Instead we tuned in, turned on and dropped out.

Even as education became valued in the 1980's, American history was conveyed poorly, if at all. Revisionists and America haters taught our children that Christopher Columbus was a villain, Thanksgiving celebrates the decimation of Native Americans and so on. Our universities became a breeding swamp for anti-American sentiment and the ground was now fertile for poisonous mushrooms like Karen Armstrong and Edward Said to flourish.

So this is how we've come to where we are. But if we wish to depart from the involution of everything noble we've created then some clear choices will have to be made.

For one thing, henceforth, no one should be allowed to graduate high school without a depth and breadth of knowledge about why America is really the most remarkable experiment in freedom and individual opportunity to have occurred since the dawn of man. Likewise, citizenship in our country should be made contingent upon the active, demonstrable vociferous support of those precious freedoms we cherish. Seditious words and deeds proffered against us should be dealt with promptly and forcefully. There is nothing wrong with defending ourselves.

It is said that those who stand for nothing will fall for anything. As we see every day, that 'anything' now happens to be Islam. When, as a society, we once again remember and truly value our hard won birthright we will no longer be susceptible to the miasmatic message espoused by Islamists such as Anjem Choudary and Johari Abdul-Malik. In order to actualize Dr. Pipes' approach we must be able to comprehend and defend the wonders of our beautiful homeland with the passion and pride America deserves.

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