Almost One Hundred Things that Fuel Muslim Extremism

by Hugh Fitzgerald (Oct. 2006)

“The American presence in Iraq fuels Muslim extremism.”

      — a conclusion concluded from, the National Intelligence Estimate by many concluders in solemn conclusory conclave assembled.

 

Ninety-Five Other Things That Also Fuel Muslim Extremism:

 

  1. Salman Rushdie’s “The Satanic Verses.”
  2. The British government’s protection of Salman Rushdie.
  3. The American coup against Mossadegh in 1953, cited by some Iranians as the direct cause of the takeover of Iran by the Ayatollah Khomeini more than 25 years later..
  4. The remarks of Pim Fortuyn about Muslim attitudes toward liberal Dutch mores.
  5. The movie by Theo van Gogh about the subjection of women in Islam.
  6. The election of Ayaan Hirsi Ali to the Dutch Parliament.
  7. The passing-by mosques by Hindus as Friday Prayers end.
  8. The failure of Americans in Iraq to sufficiently subdue the Sunni insurgents..
  9. The failure of Americans in Iraq to sufficiently subdue the Shi’a militias.
  10. The failure of Americans in Iraq to sufficiently subdue the Kurdish desire for independence .
  11. The failure of Americans in Iraq to give Baghdad an instant makeover so that it resembles the most prosperous and advanced American city.
  12. The failure of Americans to solve every economic problem in Iraq, to make Sunnis and Shi’a friends, to get the oilfields pumping at full capacity, and to make donations even beyond the many tens of billions spent directly on reconstruction in Iraq.
  13. The failure of the Americans, in obtaining debt relief from all Infidel creditors for Iraq (but not from any of the Muslim Arab states), to persuade those same Infidel countries  to supply another $50-$100 billion.
  14. The refusal of the French state to permit the wearing of the hijab.
  15. The insistence, by the French state, that Voltaire, Montaigne, Proust, and other anti-Islamic writers, be assigned texts in the schools.
  16. The selling of alcohol by Christians in Basra.
  17. The existence of Christians in Basra.
  18. The continued functioning of Christian churches in Baghdad.
  19. The Copts in Egypt who complain when Muslims attack their churches and other institutions, or kidnap and forcibly convert Coptic girls to Islam.
  20. The Filipinos who try to hold private religious services in Saudi Arabia, land on which no non-Muslims should be present in any case.
  21. The American airmen who were assigned to bases in Saudi Arabia and who showed insufficient obeisance to their Saudi masters, all daggers and dishdashas, with their sneers of cold command.
  22. The obvious superiority of Western economies.
  23. The obvious superiority of Western education.
  24. The obvious superiority of Western medical care.
  25. The obvious superiority of Western artistic achievement.
  26. The obvious superiority of Western (fill in here whatever you like).
  27. The failure of Muslims living in the countries of Western Europe to have a standard of living equal or superior to that of non-Muslims.
  28. The continued refusal of non-Muslims in the West to institute a formalized long-term system of Jizyah, by which Muslims can be supported, as they now must make do only with the benefits provided by Infidel taxpayers on a year-to-year basis.
  29. The financial support given by the Americans to the Mubarak regime in Egypt which enrages the Muslim Brotherhood..
  30. The financial support given by the Americans to successive Jordanian kings and kinglets which enrages the Muslim Brotherhood.
  31. The diplomatic and other support given by the Americans to the corrupt Al-Saud family of “Saudi” Arabia, which enrages Al-Qaeda and its local supporters..
  32. The threats by some in the United States to withdraw support from the Mubarak Friends-and-Family Plan, which whips up anti-American sentiment among Egyptian Muslims.
  33. The threats by some in the United States to withdraw support from Pakistan if it does not collaborate less meretriciously in the soi-disant “war on terror” which whips up anti-American sentiment among Pakistani Muslims.
  34. The temporary withdrawal of Infidel support for the “Palestinians” who deserve to  receive Infidel aid of  every kind, and permanently.
  35. The discussion, by some in the West, of ways to diminish, in order to prevent further global warming, the use of oil – which are seen as damaging Arab and Muslim interests, and must therefore be regarded as a deliberate attack on Islam.
  36. The reference by Pope Benedict to a 14th century Byzantine emperor’s remarks  in the course of a scholarly address at Regensburg.
  37. The refusal of Pope Benedict to continue to apologize, and his apparent refusal to completely humiliate himself, before Muslims demanding such humiliation.
  38. The Israeli “occupation” of Sinai, Gaza, and the West Bank after the Six-Day War..
  39. The Israeli “occupation” of Gaza, and the West Bank after the Camp David Accords..
  40. The Israeli “occupation” of the West Bank after the full withdrawal from Gaza..
  41. The Israeli “occupation” of the sacred Arab and Muslim soil on which the only Jewish state was created in 1948..
  42. The presence of Jews in the Middle East.
  43. The presence of Jews, uncowed, anywhere in the world.
  44. The presence of a strong self-assured community of Christians in Lebanon.
  45. The presence of Copts in Egypt who sometimes act as if they, too, too, have a right to regard Egypt as their land..
  46. The refusal of Italian authorities to prosecute, before her death, Oriana Fallaci.
  47. The refusal of Italian authorities to ban Dante in schools because of the mention of Muhammad in The Inferno.
  48. The refusal of Italian authorities to remove or cover over frescoes in Bologna that depict Muhammad in an unflattering manner.
  49. The refusal of the government of Denmark to punish a Danish newspaper, Jyllands-Posten, for daring to exercise the right of free speech.
  50. The refusal of Hindus to abandon any claim to ancient sites, where Hindu temples once stood until destroyed by Muslim invaders.
  51. The refusal of some Hindus to forget the history of India.
  52. The refusal of some European governments to permit Muslim mosques of any size to be built wherever, whenever, and with whatever towering minarets and electronic amplifying equipment, as Muslims believe is their sacred right.
  53. The attempts by some Western police to enter mosques where they have found, in the past, false passports and other documents, weapons including guns and explosives, sometimes hidden in false ceilings.
  54. The attempt to permit Europeans to continue, even outside Denmark, to exercise the so-called  right of free speech, as has happened with Charlie-Hébdo and other French newspapers.
  55. The refusal of the University of Geneva to renew the contract of Tariq Ramadan.
  56. The public displays of piggy-banks, and of allusions, in English pub names, such as The Saracen’s Head, which may offend Muslims.
  57. The plans by some national authorities in Holland, and state authorities in Germany, in discussing the need for, or even instituting, more stringent qualifications for nationalization.
  58. The single mention by President Bush of the word “islamofascism” – a word which must never again be repeated by him, and which he never again repeated.
  59. The behavior of American soldiers who have on several occasions returned deadly fire coming at them from mosques in Iraq.
  60. The behavior of the British police in not notifying Muslim authorities, well in advance, of any planned raids on any suspected Muslim terrorists in Great Britain, a grave offense which has now apparently, in order to win Muslim hearts and Muslim minds, been rectified.
  61. The belief that some in the West continue to hold, that Jews do have a historic as well as religious connection to the part of Dar al-Islam they call Israel..
  62. The outrageous way in which Infidels refer to the Prophet Muhammad as if he is not universally regarded as the Perfect Man, uswa hasana, al-insan al-kamil.
  63. The mention by Infidels of aspects of Muhammad’s life – such as the Khaybar Oasis attack, the Banu Qurayza decapitation, the murder of Asma bint Marwan, the marriage to nine-year-old Aisha, which are not true, or if true, are not things which Infidels have any right either to discuss, or even to know about.
  64. The belief of some Infidels that those who give up on Islam, who are apostates and therefore traitors to Islam, could after their act of treason conceivably continue to know anything about Islam, given that Allah clearly takes away from such people all their previous knowledge of Islam at the very moment when they decide to apostasize.
  65. The outrageous belief by some Infidels that nonetheless they may have reason to listen to the testimony of ex-Muslims as to the real contents of Islam.
  66. The outrageous and insulting mention, by Infidels, of such words as “taqiyya” and “kitman.”
  67. The outrageous mention, by Infidels, of the word “dhimmi” about which they can not possibly have any accurate conception, and which they have no right to discuss in the first place unless they are Muslims.
  68. The outrageous attempt to suggest that people are not born Muslims.
  69. The outrageous attempt to suggest that the spread of Islam was ever undertaken through violence, when everyone knows it was a case of sudden mass conversion.
  70. The refusal of this or that Infidel religious leader, political figure, writer, artist, comedian, or simply you, or simply I, to exhibit the proper attitude toward Islam, Islam, Islam.
  71. The wherewithal provided by OPEC revenues that enable the Saudis, especially, to fund mosques and madrasas worldwide and thereby naturally increase the numbers of “extremists” in the Lands of the Infidels..
  72. The wherewithal of OPEC revenues that pay for an army of Western hirelings, including former diplomats (mostly English and American), former intelligence agents, former and present journalists, especially those covering the Middle East, public relations experts, businessmen eager for contracts in the Gulf, and many other fixers and middlemen. This helps delay the day of new energy policies that could conceivably diminish the OPEC oil revenues that fund the Jihad, and also prevents the unwary from regarding Saudi Arabia as anything other than a “staunch ally.”
  73. The willingness of journalists to overlook obvious links between the practice of Jihad, and the doctrine of Jihad, encouraged by journalists who still do not feel the obligation to learn about Islam. This encourages Muslims to make demands, whether for changes in political and legal institutions in the West, or to insist that outspoken Infidels – the Pope, Theo van Gogh, Jyllens-Posten – to stop speaking or writing about Islam. Any such refusal to comply with Muslim demands engenders – “fuels” – Muslim “extremism.”
  74. The refusal of the Buddhists in southern Thailand to stop being Buddhists.
  75. The refusal of the Christians in the southern Philippines to submit to the demands to hand over lands to the Muslims of As Sayyaf.
  76. The refusal of Christians in Sulawesi to stop holding church services.
  77. The refusal of the Israeli government to stop trying to protect ancient archeological sites in Jerusalem, severely damaged by the Muslim construction on and deep within the Temple Mount.
  78. The refusal of Hindus in India to concede to Muslim demands for the full application of Shari’a to the Muslim community. 
  79. The refusal of Orthodox priests in monasteries in Bosnia and Kosovo to abandon the monasteries to Muslims, clamoring to destroy them.
  80. The outrageous insistence by the world’s Armenians, and by many others, that Turkey stop denying the mass murder of Armenians by Muslim Turks between 1915 and 1920.
  81. The outrageous demands by many Infidel lands that outside forces be brought in to protect the non-Arab Muslims from the Arab Muslims in Darfur, despite the express opposition of both the government of the Sudan, and the opposition of the Arab League.
  82. The outrageous demands by some Infidels that Muslims should be permitted to open mosques only on the basis of reciprocity – that is, on the basis of similar permission being granted to non-Muslims in Muslim lands.
  83. The outrageous refusal of some Infidel countries to prevent transmissions of Al Manar and other satellite channels run by terrorist groups.
  84. The refusal of many Western countries – Great Britain, Germany, Canada — to yield to demands of local Muslims that they be made subject only  to the Shari’a and not the man-made laws of the Infidels.
  85. The refusal by Australia to cease contributing troops to help their American allies  in Afghanistan and Iraq.
  86. The continued existence of Jews.
  87. The continued existence of Christians.
  88. The continued existence of Hindus.
  89. The continued existence of Sikhs.
  90. The continued existence of Buddhists.
  91. The continued existence of followers of Confucius.
  92. The continued existence of agnostics.
  93. The continued existence of atheists.
  94. Everything.
  95. Nothing.     

 

Some, especially in Lutheran lands, may be satisfied with these 95 theses. Others may prefer to round out the polemical embonpoint by adding another five items to the list.  Still others may wish to keep adding to the list from the rich profusion of items offered by each day’s Jihad news, items in keeping with the nature,, and quite unnecessary nurture of, the belief-system of Islam. It took very little time to compose this list. It would not take much longer to add another hundred, two hundred, three hundred items to the list of things that “fuel Muslim extremism.”

 

 

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Hugh Fitzgerald contributes regularly to The Iconoclast, our Community Blog. Click here to see all his contributions, on which comments are welcome.