Islamofascist is the better term

Submitted by Pat (United States), Aug 14, 2006 at 17:11

Islamofascist is more definitive. With just one exception, the attributes of fascism defined by Dr. Pipes are present in the militant form of Islam used to justify violence.

1. Fascism glorifies the state. So does Islam. It sees no difference between the individual and the community. One for all and all for one.

2. Emphasizes racial purity. Islamists emphasize religious purity. No non-Muslim is worthy of setting foot in Mecca. Non-Muslims are dhimmis in Muslim society.

3. Promotes social Darwinism. Islamists think anyone who seeks peace is weak and deserves to be conquered. This suggests that the worst thing Israelis ever did was elect Ehud Barak, since any peace offer would be viewed as a sign of weakness and that society would, in Muslim eyes, deserve to be conquered.

4. Denigrates reason. Islamists seem to place more emphasis on being able to recite the Koran from memory than on teaching their children new skills and how to survive in the modern age. Fascism denigrates reason. Islamism denigrates learning.

5. Exalts the will. This would seem to not apply..

6. Rejects organized religion. Islamofascists reject all OTHER organized religion. Some even reject other forms of Islam.

There's a reason it's called islamofascism. It's not fascism in the historical sense. Islam has bred its own flavor of fascism.

The term Islamist has problems of its own. In English, the suffix "ist" is used with verbs or nouns to denote someone who is concerned about somthing or who holds certain beliefs, such as a realist or theist or dramatist, etc. How long will it be before Muslims appropriate the term Islamist and say that its use in connection with organized terrorism is derogatory?

Islamofascist is more precise and so it seems to have more staying power, for now anyway.

Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome but not comments that are scurrilous, off-topic, commercial, disparaging religions, or otherwise inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the "Guidelines for Reader Comments".