Jihad Watch Board Vice President Hugh Fitzgerald pleads for some common sense in our relationship with the new terrorists running the Palestinian Authority:
The Administration failed to predict the Hamas victory in the "Palestinian” election. Will it now compound the error by continuing the jizya? After the results were in, Cheney consoled himself with the misleading explanation that while everyone had been aware of the corruption of the Arafat years, loyally continued by the corrupt wolf-in-accountant's-clothing Abbas, they had not realized the depth of resentment at what Cheney too easily described as a "vote against corruption."He still does not understand the whole point about "democracy" as mere vote-counting in the Muslim countries. It will always lead to Islam, for there are always far more primitive extreme Believers than there are Makiyas, Chalabis, and Allawis, who themselves may be "Muslims-for-identification-purposes-only" Muslims who wish that they could bottle Islam up. After all, didn't Ataturk do it? But Ataturk was a war hero, who came to power after the loss of the Ottoman Empire, at a time when Turkey had difficulty holding onto Antaolia, and he used the situation, and his own fame, to limit Islam as a political and social force. The westernized Iraqis who spent from 20 to 45 years in exile, must realize that they are in no position to limit Islam, and the blend of careerist calculation and filial or civliizational piety and most importantly, physical fear, that prevents so many non-believing Muslims from openly expressing the need to limit Islam for the sake of Muslims themselves, hobbles even the most intelligent secularists.
Yes, there was corruption in the "Palestinian" territories. And before that, there was corruption in the PLO ranks in Tunis, and before that in Beirut. And there is gigantic corruption in Egypt (what do you think happens to that American aid?), and in Saudi Arabia (how do you think the Saudi share of the $10 trillion received by OPEC states since 1973 have been spent?) and everywhere in the regimes run by despots in the Arab and Muslim world. In them, the entire universe is seen through the prism of Islam. There is Islam and only Islam. The good government party, the party of the disaffected, will always be Islamic. That is the point.
Until conditions are created such that Muslims themselves can come to see that the lords of misrule that they endure have been fostered by the tradition of despotism that Islam (and its "uswa hasana" model for all time) encourages, they will continue to suffer -- and so will we. The habit of mental submission and discouragement of free and skeptical inquiry is naturally, at all times and everywhere, against the creation of a free citizenry. For god's sake, we are not asking for the sturdy English yeomen to be created -- just some sense that the legitimacy of a government resides, believe it or not, in the consent of the governed, and not in a despot or the Shari'a, which is simply despotism reduced to rules.What should we do now? We should stop with Grand Plans to remake the Islamic world. Stop trying, with Infidel billions and lives, and sympathetic attention, to change what can only be changed, if it can be changed, from within, over a very long time. Leave the Muslim Arabs to their own devices, and most of the other Muslims as well. (Where non-Arab resentment of Arabs, where the growing perception that islamization has always been a vehicle for Arab cultural and linguistic and other kinds of imperialism exists, that may be played upon). Don't transfer still more wealth from the Infidels to the Muslim world. The gigantic sums that the Arab and Muslim members of OPEC receive are enough; the huge sums that Infidels within Europe transfer, as both welfare payments to large Muslim families where every Infidel penny is grabbed, and for prisons, where Muslims in such countries as France are now the majority of the population, and the enormous amounts now spent on security measures to monitor mosques, madrasas, and the Muslim communities, and individuals, all over Western Europe, represent already a great and growing strain on Infidel economies. Don't invade Muslim countries (but make sure they don't acquire major weaponry, a matter that does not require a land invasion). Don't let them have easy access to Western technology, or their students to Western training in any subject -- physics, chemistry, computer sciences -- that might be put to military use. Don't allow the rich Arabs to continue to assume that they can buy whatever goods and services they wish, or have safe houses and apartments and other real estate waiting for them, as they fondly believe, should they ever need to flee from their own countries, and the people whom they have fleeced. . Work to reduce their revenues so that they cannot employ the "wealth weapon" to fund the world-wide Jihad. Allow whatever divisions that exist within Islam to grow, and grow, and grow -- do nothing to discourage that growth.
That's it. And don't find solace in the notion that some Muslims were "voting against corruption." So they were. But they were also voting for Islam, more Islam, naked Islam, no longer the pretense of something else which in any case was purely for the consumption of the non-Islamic world.
Some are worried that if we stop the jizya to the Palestinians, and leave them be, Hamas will take money from Saudi Arabia or Iran. Why worry? Will they be even more extreme than those who know proudly proclaim their desire "to drink the blood of Jews" and to wipe out Israel entirely? Exactly how much more extreme could they get? Let them use up funds from Iran, further alienating the Iranians who have not forgotten the role of Arafat and the PLO in putting Khomeini in power and subjecting Iran to 25 years of misery and terror. Let them watch as the "Palestinian" Arabs use up Iranian money. It will not make them more favorably inclined to the Arabs about whom Iranians, like Turks, make clear to any Westerner who will listen their limitless contempt. And some may even connect that funding of the unworthy Arabs -- "Palestinians" -- as reminding them that Islam itself was a poisoned chalice first brought to Sassanian Persia by the conquering Arabs. Mountains of eyes at Kerbala. Mass death at Qadassiyah.
And if the supplier of money is Saudi Arabia, that is a good thing. The more money that can be soaked up, or drained away, from Saudi Arabia, the better. Let them pay for the "Palestinians." It may curb their enthusiasm for the increasingly expensive Jihad.
And this will also get the Americans and the Europeans used to a brand-new, seemingly unheard-of notion -- they, the Infidels, owe the "Palestinians" who are the shock troops of the Lesser Jihad exactly nothing. They should not have to apologize or even adduce some reason for failing to give Jizyah to those local Arabs. No reason at all is necessary. It was foolish to start paying this damn Jizyah in the first place.
Stop it. Stop it for Hamas, and don't renew it for any group other than Hamas. Fatah is no different in its ultimate aim, but merely in the way it phrases things to fool a Western world quite eager to be fooled.
Stop the Jizyah for the "Palestinian" Arabs. Get the idea, then stop all such payments to Arabs and Muslims elsewhere. It makes no sense. It gives the Muslims exactly the wrong idea.
That idea has to be undone, from top to bottom.
I must confess I was one of those who foolishly thought we could bring democracy to the Middle East and it would change things for the better. Clearly, as Hugh says, they will always vote for Islam and all that implies. The strategy has failed and it's time to realize that.
All the suggestions Hugh made make sense. Will the West have the wisdom to apply them? Time will tell, but I'm not optimistic.
Instead of the PDB that the President reads every day, how bout Robert's and Hugh's daily missive. I said this only half-jockingly, for your last piece perfectly encapsulates my thinking . . . let's see we're worried about further 'radicalization' of those who want to kill five million living Israelis, the sons of pigs and monkeys. It's kind of like if you were a some sort of 'moderate' in Russia in 1917 and we're afraid of Lenin, but said, "let's support Comrades Trotsky and Lennin, or the real communists will take ove." This is a test case. These guys stink to high even; their the Real Muhamads without the gloss for Western tv. If the west cannot cut off aid in such a clear case, then, sadly, is there any hope in the confrontation with the Muslim World, or will we be like Bernard Getz' victims with UBL sucker punching us with a WMD, saying, 'you look like you haven't had enough.' Seeing Condi discuss Iraq and Iran with Biden and company was like a food fight in the blind school. Both sides blind as a bat to what the problem actually is. It's not WMD, it's not neocon fantasy land, it the Muslims's stupid . . . maybe Tancredo can use it as a campaign slogan. I like what I see from Tancredo so far . . . standing up to W for what's right. The issue with the border has nothing to do with illegal Mexicans from my standpoint, but has everything to do with a Jihadist attack, and with the border zones distintigrating into a weaponized region--the Islamists could use this for an attack, but nothing from W or Hillary. As much as one side states the other political party is so bad, they're mostly all the same . . . there are few Churchils, Gippers, FDR's or Lincolns and we need one now.
Major credit to Hugh for popularizing the idea (meme) that one doesn't have to be a dhimmi in a Muslim nation to be paying the Jizya. That lazy, greedy Muslims, lazy, greedy Muslim political & cultural organizations and lazy, greedy Muslim nations are extorting Jizya from infidels all over the world. These intimidators view it as their divine due that the infidel should subsidize their idle existence of tea drinking, hookah puffing, prayer and ass upwards genuflection to Muhammad's sock puppet
Let's help spread Hugh's meme!
I've contacted both my congressman's staff, and the staffs of Senators Boxer and Feinstein about this; asking for their opinion.
No written responses, so far.
If the US or any western country supports the new emerging governing influence of Hamas in Palestine in any fashion, than we are implicating ourselves as supporters of terrorism against the state of Israel or for that matter any infidel state. What is our argument then if we are to continue to prosecute people like Sami Al Arian and his ilk if we our supporters of terrorism ourselves?
Western politicians who sorry to say; foolishly convince themselves contrary to overwhelming, and continous evidence, still believe that some how Hamas will change have only have to consider what the Hamas leader said On Feb. 3, Hamas chief Khaled Mash'al declared in Damascus: "Before Israel dies, it must be humiliated and degraded," according to the Middle East Media Research.
Hamas has never really veered from its 36 article objective, claiming time and time again that it is locked in stone. They are totally preoccupied with their collective hate for Israel and the western countries that continue to pay the Jizya taxes to them.
If we believe otherwise, than we are only deluding ourselves of what can clearly be described as the duck in the forest that we want to insist is not really there..
You feed a helpless tiger cub by hand -out of misplaced sympathy- and it will eventually eat your hand as well. Then the rest of you. And then your children
Starve the damned thing before it can find food for itself.
dennisw --
Memes Away!
Hugh is right when he questions the wisdom of US Authorities to render faithfully the 'Jizia" to the Palestenian Hamas. Hmas,as every body knows is a American Hating Organisation,and often induge in burning Americn flags ,and shouting 'Death to America' in the past.Is there any agreement ,or obligation on the part of America to pay that huge sun? What is the earthly enefit America is getting? The same money can be diverted to some useful causes such as Catrina relief,or houses for the homeless in America. The Government has no authrity to aqaunder the tax money of Americans to the lazy,good for nothing palestenians,whose main economic activity is -stone throwing,building burning,and suicide bombings.See the progrss the Jews have made?The inventions Jews have made. Shamelessly the Palestenians go and stand in que for work at jewish places.At least help that money to Denmark,to re-establish its trade deficit,due to the boycot of their products by the heartless Muslims.
Dennisw- You are correct when you say "greedy,lazy Muslims".I will add "Troublesome,blood-sucking, cockroaches. Now is the time for the West,and America to stop importing these type of people,and promote the immigration of deserving East Europeans,who have joined the European Union now,who are Hardworking,Loyal Christians,who will not kill your own people,after gettingfat in your own country.Denmarg has alrady started immigrating east Europeans.
FROM WND'S JERUSALEM BUREAU
'Good,' bad terrorists trade roles in Mideast
With rise of Hamas, Abbas' Fatah, Brigades vow to become primary attackers of Israelis
Posted: February 16, 2006
1:00 a.m. Eastern
JERUSALEM – Now that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' long-ruling Fatah Party has been forced into the opposition by Hamas' rise to power, Fatah and its "military offshoot," the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, will become the most active Palestinian terror group, a senior Brigades leader said in an exclusive interview.
The leader said Abbas' party supports the Brigades' terror attacks against Israeli civilians and approves of a massive violent offensive he warned will soon be launched against the Jewish state, in part to revolt against Hamas."
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=48849
Israel’s defense chiefs recommend administrative steps to separate Hamas-governed Palestinian areas
February 16, 2006, 10:12 PM (GMT+02:00)
DEBKAfile reports: Thursday, Feb. 16, defense minister Shaul Mofaz and top officials of the national security and military branches assembled a package of recommendations for acting prime minister Ehud Olmert to put into effect.
They advised the following steps to be enforced when Hamas deputies take their seats in the new Palestinian legislative council Saturday, Feb. 18:
1. To annul existing customs accords between Israel and the Palestinians. Israel’s customs authorities will henceforth treat Palestinian imports and exports like any other foreign goods transiting state borders according to tariffs determined in Jerusalem. This will also eliminate any future transfers to the Palestinian Authority.
2. Palestinian workers will no longer be allowed to work in Israel. Tens of thousands will be stopped at Gaza's checkpoints as of Sunday.
3. Israel will cancel all the VIP permits issued to high Palestinian functionaries.
The effect of 2. and 3. will be to bring to a standstill the entry of Palestinians into Israel.
4. Palestinian travel between the Gaza Strip and West Bank across Israeli territory will be banned.
These steps are recommendations. It is up to the prime minister to decide whether to adopt them
..same story at Reuters..
JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israel's Defense Ministry recommended on Thursday barring all Palestinians from working in Israel and from traveling between Gaza and the West Bank once a Hamas-led parliament is sworn in, government officials said.
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsarticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyid=2006-02-16T162607Z_01_L16306490_RTRUKOC_0_US-MIDEAST.xml
Hamas,as every body knows is a American Hating Organisation...
No, most are gullible and think that Hamas is merely a Jew-hating organization. A good example of this wishful thinking would be our buck toothed ex-President Jimmy Carter. That's why he always wears that dumbass smile and blank stare when he holds forth on how to solve the so-called Arab-Israeli conflict.
Good thinking, Jimmy. And damned good job in Tehran, too. No wonder those Norwegians couldn't resist giving you a Nobel. You're a genius.
Jimmy, have you thought about taking a professorship up at UGA? Very pro-Islam they are up in Athens. You'll fit right in.