And the article is even better than the title. Here is an analysis of the Baker/Hamilton Report by Timothy R. Furnish, Assistant Professor of History at Georgia Perimeter College, author of Holiest Wars: Islamic Mahdis, their Jihads and Osama bin Laden, and proprieter of the informative website mahdiwatch.org.
In perhaps no region of the world is history more important than in the Middle East; to note just a few of the most striking examples: Jewish claims to Jerusalem and environs are at least partially predicated on the Hebrew Scriptures’ 3,000 year-old assertions of divinely-assigned real estate rights; a significant slice of Muslim Arab public opinion resonates to every attempt by Usama bin Ladin and his ilk to link millennium-old Crusader belligerence with the Americans; and millions of Shi`is in Iran, Iraq and Lebanon are waiting for a man who disappeared over a thousand years ago to re-emerge onto the historical stage as the Mahdi.So it is particularly disappointing when America’s best and brightest bipartisan foreign policy minds, when tasked by the President to devise ways to drain the bog of war in Iraq, come up with a document steeped in historical misunderstandings and downright inaccuracies about Islam, Iraq and the Middle East.
One jarring misapprehension is the ignorance of (or perhaps simple refusal to acknowledge) the eschatological element of two of the major Shi`i players in the region: Moqtada al-Sadr’s Mahdi Army in Iraq, and—more ominously—Mahmud Ahmadinezhad and the ayatollahs of Iran. These are men who clearly hold, and frequently publicly express, a strong belief in the imminent re-arrival of the long-Hidden Twelfth Imam (a descendant of Ali, Muhammad’s son-in-law and cousin, who died in 680 CE): al-Sadr is said to believe that the U.S. invaded Iraq in order to stymie the Mahdi’s coming-out party, and Ahmadinezhad—when not holding Holocaust denial conferences and musing about a world without Jews or Americans—is publicly praying at the U.N. for Allah to send the Mahdi. Yet Messrs. Baker and Hamilton suggest that we “try to talk directly to Moqtada al-Sadr” (p. 67) and “should actively engage Iran and Syria in…diplomatic dialogue, without preconditions” (p. 50).
Is the eschatological fervor, bordering on irrationality, of al-Sadr and Ahmadinezhad not worthy of some consideration? One might think it would somewhat complicate the “can’t we all just get along?” approach that Baker and Hamilton seem to be promoting. The flip side of the coming of the Mahdi is the emergence of al-Dajjal, “the Deceiver” of the Islamic traditions—an anti-christ figure who will lead many believers astray and into apocalyptic battle against the forces of the Mahdi and the returned Muslim prophet Jesus. And the Dajjal, by the way, will be Jewish. How, pray tell, does the U.S. negotiate with folks who not only hold but configure their politics around beliefs like that? Yes, of course, George Bush believes Jesus will return—but has he prayed publicly for that to happen in the well of the U.N. General Assembly, as Iran’s president has done regarding the Mahdi? WWJD—“What Would Jesus Do?”—is not a question bandied about at Bush Administration Cabinet meetings; I am not sure that the same can be said of “WWMD?”—“What Would (the) Mahdi Do?”—in Ahmadinezhad’s strategy meetings.
Read it all.
Morning all!
OT but related-
For every 'Bandar' Bush, there's a D(h)immi Carter:
Jimmy Carter and the Arab Lobby (and YES, that Includes Bin Laden)
http://www.frontpagemag.com/Articles/ReadArticle.asp?ID=26045
Eh, nariz?
Probably the most sobering thing about Imaminijihad is his belief that HE is the one selected to start the war that will bring the Mahdi up out of his resting place in that hole in the ground (i.e. Pit) they call a well in that little town just outside Tehran.
O.T. Is anyone wondering like I am about all the sickness from many different restaurants across the U.S. This was never heard of on cruise ships until a couple of years ago. Are these planned events? Are these trial runs? Are these things coming across our border? Inquiring minds want to know.
the muslims are awaiting the mahdi!
i have read in the sunnah of the prophet muhammad aka hadiths that the mahdi will appear barefoot and naked.
Now im thinking this mahdi dood had better not appear in any muslim country or he will immediately be arrested and impaled!
So much for the mahdi!
now after reading of this mahdi dood, i would say president Bush just may be islams long awaited mahdi!
President Bush has done more to relieve muslims from their oppressors and lift the muslims out of their impoverished lives than any muslim throughout all of islamic history, including muhammad!
im sure if we do some background ancestorial history on president Bush we will find he is decended from fatimah as the mahdi is prophicied to come from!
rejoice you muslims, president Bush, your long awaited mahdi has arrived!
O.T. Is anyone wondering like I am about all the sickness from many different restaurants across the U.S. This was never heard of on cruise ships until a couple of years ago. Are these planned events? Are these trial runs? Are these things coming across our border? Inquiring minds want to know.
Posted by: guide inside
good question ofcourse we will be called and considered racist, bigots and islamophobes for even harboring such thoughts!
But what better easier and safer way for jihadis to attack and kill american than by those working in americas food handling industry.
They need not carry any poisons to work with them since the ecoli bacteria can be contracted through foods contaminated with human waste.
"So it is particularly disappointing when America’s best and brightest bipartisan foreign policy minds"
The these are the best and brightest foreign policy minds is debatable.
I think they are quite fearfull and possibly uneductated in Islam.
Let us administer an Islamic knowledge test to all who wish to advise on how to deal with the Islamic problem. I would wager most will fail.
How can you advise on problem solving, when you do not understand the problem?
How does one talk to crackpots who believe in such mystical foolishness and try to hasten a desired outcome based on it? looks like the only answer is with a war started by those crackpots because nothing will deter them from achieving their mystical delusions.
Give the Study Group an F- and pass out dunce hats. In fact, send the Study Group to summer school because it needs lots of help.
In reference to my first post, I should have said- Is this the Norovirus or the Zorrovirus ?? HAhahahah
How does one talk to crackpots who believe in such mystical foolishness and try to hasten a desired outcome based on it? looks like the only answer is with a war started by those crackpots because nothing will deter them from achieving their mystical delusions.
Posted by: ISLAMSFORLOSERS
if americas politicians dont consider an attack on american soil by the islamic ummah murdering over 3000 innocent unarmed american men women and children nor the bombing of military barracks in lebanon and saudi arabia nor americas embassies or our naval ships, then what in hell pray tell will the politicians of america consider a declaration of war?
part of the problem is our unknowledgable politicians dont comprehend that all of these attacks were not committed by a specific nation like iraq or afghanistan or saudi arabia, these acts were committed by "all" of these nations, they were committed by the islamic ummah supported by 99% of all muslims on the face of this earth!
americas politicians cant seem to comprehend that al qaeda is not an organization made up of muslims from only afghanistan or any particular muslim country, it is an organization made up of muslims from the ummah of islam!
How can people like Baker and Hamilton expect us to negotiate with people who hold those beliefs?
Simple they are completely ignorant of those beliefs (in even a casual way) and totally discount the influence of religion, any religion, on a persons behavior. Sadly modern man has relegated faith and religion to the area of non-reason or the flake-factor
label, or some other mental cubby hole tucked away in their minds.
It is a pervasive problem which has tragic results. Since it doesn't affect them then it is not worthy of study. They are realists or rationalists, don't you know?
An example of this appalling ignorance was seen in the initial contacts of the FBI/ATF with David Koresh in Waco. They wanted to talk to him. When Koresh started talking about the 7 seals the negotiators actually thought he was talking about the marine mammal.
Others who had a clue that this talk had something to do with religion or the Bible ran off to the nearest motel looking for a Gideon Bible to bone up on what Koresh was talking about in order to get inside his head. I'm not saying B&H or the agent corp of the FBI should have phd in religious studies but this ignorance of something that motivates most peoples' behavior is appalling!!! Especially for people whose job it is to know human nature and make predictions about it.
Ignorance isn't bliss in this case...it's FATAL.