What do we need to combat Islamism?

Submitted by Prashant, Sep 3, 2018 at 20:46

Dear Dr Pipes, for a very long time I also believed that we need modest Muslims to fight Islamism. Then the wisdom dawned on me. I realized that modest Muslims are either extremely rare or extremely ineffective. In my support I cite the evidence t that most Islamic nations are religious theocracies and I have never --not even once-- read about any significant demand from any Muslim for introducing secular democracy in any of these nations. I have also not found any evidence of any generous thinking by any Muslims toward non-Muslims. For example, I have said many time on your site that -area wise- hundred countries of the size of Israel can be carved out of Saudi Arabia alone. But I have never heard even one genuine or hypothetical example from Muslims that involves Islam yielding an Inch of land to resolve the (so called) Palestinian conflict.

So I do not think that we can depend on moderate Muslims to reform Islam. I think we do not even need their help. What we need, instead, is non-Muslims who demand more from Muslims and from Islamic apologists. Islam needs to be critiqued, criticized and challenged for its shortcomings. We need brave non-Muslims who can do so with firm politeness. Islam does not need to be judged by its standards. It needs to be judged by modern secular standards.

We need to ask how separate-but-equal doctrine for minorities and women can work inside Islam when it does not work any where else. We need to ask why non-separation of church and state can work in Islam when it does not work any where else. We need to ask why and how polygamy can be kosher in Islam when it does not sound right anywhere else. We need to ask why apostasy of Muslims is unwelcome but every one else can just say a shahada and become a Muslim. And, obviously, we need to ask as many times as we can why so much violence occurs in Islamic nations. And, before I forget, we need to also ask why the whole world needs to offer democracy to Muslims but they do not have to return the favor.

The world does not have 300 years for Islam to change and fix the above problems. World should offer Islam 3 years to start working on these problems. These problems can be fixed by changing the Islamic doctrines or the constitutions of Islamic theocracies or both. And, it shouldn't matter how impossible this demand sounds. Every good thing looks impossible when it begins.

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