a rose by any other name

Submitted by Andria Switzer (Canada), Aug 14, 2006 at 21:51

1. While it is interesting to consider if we are dealing with an extreme of the left or the right, the reality is that tyrannies of each extreme usually meet in the middle ie the political "divide" is more a 360 degree circle than a 180 degree line. It hardly matters if it is Stalin or Hitler that is doing the killing, tyranny and terror exist on both hard right and hard left. So, the question I ask Dr. Pipes, is how do we alter the course of these radical movements? How do we educate those in our midst who take a defensive position on the "rightness" of such a tyranny? Was it not true that the communists had lots of sympathizers? It was decades before they were shown to be wrong. Hitler had few detractors because his war was originally merely an inconvenience that the US and others did not want to have to deal with.

Where in our society (and here I mean Canada too) will we find the strength, conviction, tools and talent
to fight the Moderates who support the extremists because it is convenient to do so? For sure we have a serious lack of appetite for stayin g the course and educating the Islamic community to challenge its own?

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