It soon became clear why these particular documents had not been directed to the West. They were theological treatises, revolving around what Islam commands Muslims to do vis-à-vis non-Muslims. The documents rarely made mention of all those things — Zionism, Bush's "Crusade," malnourished Iraqi children — that formed the core of Al Qaeda's messages to the West. Instead, they were filled with countless Koranic verses, hadiths (traditions attributed to the Prophet Muhammad), and the consensus and verdicts of Islam's most authoritative voices. The temporal and emotive language directed at the West was exchanged for the eternal language of Islam when directed at Muslims. Or, put another way, the language of "reciprocity" was exchanged for that of intolerant religious fanaticism. There was, in fact, scant mention of the words "West," "U.S.," or "Israel." All of those were encompassed by that one Arabic-Islamic word, "kufr" — "infidelity" — the regrettable state of being non-Muslim that must always be fought through "tongue and teeth." – from this article by Raymond Ibrahim
Jorn Holme, and all those who continue to believe that there is something called "Islamism" that is a threat, and something called "Islam" that is not a threat, that is perfectly fine, that makes no claims on Infidel institutions or Infidel lives, should start, perhaps, by reading the article, linked above, by Raymond Ibrahim that has just appeared in the Chronicle of Higher Education.
Ibrahim, who is a researcher in the Near East Division of the Library of Congress, has had the intelligence to publish the writings of Al Qaeda members. He had noticed that these assorted manifestos and appeals, when addressed to Infidel audiences, always contained some rhetoric about such obvious "grievances" as Iraq, "Palestine," Kashmir, Kosovo, and so on. This litany, however, was completely absent from the writings and speeches directed at fellow Muslims. For them, Bin Laden, Al-Zawahiri, and others had no need to deceive ("war is deception") but could stick to Islam -- plain Islam.
And so they do: they offer the texts of Islam, passages from the Qur'an and stories from the Hadith, unchanged by a jot or tittle, the very same passages and stories that are part of Islam, and have been read, and are known, by Muslims all over the world. There is no "European Islam" or "American Islam," as some fondly believe, or somehow, illogically, think magically comes into being once Muslims are physically present on the soil of Europe or America.
Having realized that the Arabic versions of what Bin Laden and others say remained largely untranslated, and therefore unknown to Western policy-makers and the Western public, Ibrahim took on the task of translation, and mass divulgation, himself. Before Raymond Ibrahim (an Arabic-speaking non-Muslim) came along, apparently, none of our "loyal" and "moderate Muslim" Arabic-speaking scholars in colleges, or universities, or employed by the government, saw fit to discuss, much less translate, those texts. Apparently none, before Raymond Ibrahim performed his indispensable service, felt a responsibility to undertake the task themselves, and thereby to better inform Infidels (the very Infidels whom some of them have, as their professions, a duty to advise on the nature of Muslim terrorism and its sources) of what it is that menaces them now, and indeed, menaces them permanently, for Muslims are taught to think of themselves in a permanent state of war -- though not always active warfare -- with Infidels, until such time as Islam everywhere dominates and Muslims rule, everywhere.
The communiques and tapes made for Western audiences are, Ibrahim noticed, not at all like the tapes made by terrorists for fellow Muslims as recruiting tools. Those tapes, those writings, are full of standard Islamic doctrines, well-known passages from the Qur'an, "authentic" Hadith from the collections of Bukhari and Muslim. They are intended to motivate those who, out of laziness or self-interest, have become "bad" Muslims and are not sufficiently inspired to participate directly in violent Jihad, or are not "bad" Muslims but merely those who fully support the efforts of the "good" (i.e., violent) Muslims through donations of money, or through attempts to block Infidel efforts to successfully monitor or even head off those who do engage in terrorism. Terrorism, for these Muslims, is not terrorism at all. It is merely a form of qitaal, combat, and when directed at Infidels -- as opposed to fellow Muslims -- it is perfectly acceptable, unless of course any resulting harm to Muslims and to Islam renders it counter-productive. This is a merely practical objection to some kinds of terrorism, and not a moral one.
Raymond Ibrahim's book of translated documents by Bin Laden and other terrorists, The Al-Qaeda Reader, has been published in paperback. Every government official, every FBI agent, every DHS bureaucrat should have a copy.
A copy of this essay is going to be attached to a copy of this book and sent to my congress critters post haste.
Thank you Mr. Fitzgerald.
(PLEASE POST THIS ANNOUNCEMENT AT OTHER WEBSITES)
The Jihad Awareness Project (to wake up the U.S. Senate) currently has 97 volunteers in 42 states.
WE ARE STILL SEEKING ADDITIONAL CITIZEN VOLUNTEERS FROM ALL 50 STATES, ESPECIALLY THE FOLLOWING 8:
Connecticut
Delaware
Mississippi
Montana
North Dakota
South Dakota
Vermont
West Virginia
THE PROJECT: We're looking for people in every state of the Union who would be willing to purchase, from Amazon or any other source, a copy of Robert Spencer's new book Religion of Peace? Why Christianity Is And Islam Isn't and mail it, on an agreed upon date, to one of the senators in your state. We want to get the book simultaneously to all 100 senators, in order to send a strong message. If we get more than two people per state, books can also be sent to the U.S. House of Representatives.
If you'd like to participate (or you just have questions), please write to me at traehnam@yahoo.com under the subject heading "Senate," and tell me the state your senator represents, and a nickname. No need for your real name. And I will never share your email address with anyone, not even with other volunteers for this project.
And visit jihadawareness.blogspot.com to get more info on this project and to leave comments other volunteers can read. You can also see there the growing list of participants in this project, and the states their senators represent. I've also designed a graphic that might amuse. Scroll down when you get to the site.
Once we have at least two people from every state, we can agree on a mailing date and then each of us can mail a copy of the book on that date.
Right before each of us mails the book, we’ll issue a press release to media outlets in as many states as possible, and in that way announce and explain the mailing. And perhaps we can come up with some other ways of maximizing the effectiveness of this project and gaining as much positive attention as possible.
One of the project's volunteers suggested contacting Rep. Sue Myrick, who started the Anti-Jihad Caucus in Congress. When we reach the goal of having all 100 senators covered, I'll call Rep. Myrick's office and see if she can help. I've called several congressional offices to get advice on how best to proceed.
I have read so many books on the subject...
This book puts an end to all debate on Al-Qaeda's motives (which are purely Religious in nature & have little or nothing to do with U.S. Foreign Policy), and AQ's goals (A world of Islamic Dominion with all other faiths living in perpetual dhimmitude)...
Of particular note is how often Sayyid Qutb & Ibn Tamiyya (The Shiek of Islam) are mentioned...
For those unfamiliar Tamiyya considered Jihad a virtual 6th pillar of faith & never met an offensive Jihad he didn't support...
Qutb became disgusted with our debauche western society after attending a Barn dance in Greeley Colorado, not after walking down Sunset Strip or through the French Quarter, but at a 1940's barn dance...
(How do you think he would see America today?)
If you want to understand what is truly guiding Modern Jihad and the contemporary Mujahadeen, pick-up the Al-Qaeda Reader...
Human Pride World-Wide
Bob Grant
Bin Lying needs to come to Columbia and answer tough questions in the spirit of Peace and Dialog. Just like Ineedajob did.
I'm sure Bin Lying can clear up our confusion over missrepresentation.
Latin Phrases:
Hugh, somepeople turn their intellectual pursuits to other directions, such as making life less of a struggle for society. I certainly would not put
Q = U x A x (Ti-To) in an essay written for broad consumption and then criticize someone for not looking it up themselves. Q=UxAxdeltaT is just as obscure to a non-engineer as some Latin phrases are to me.
This is O.T. but I figured it is worth posting, especially for our friends abroad in Britian, check it
http://www.nationalterroralert.com/updates/2007/09/30/german-us-airbase-terror-suspect-on-the-run-in-britain/
Pelayo --
I think you intended to post the comment you make above at a diffent place, on the thread following "Fitzgerald: How Politicians Can Avoid Missteps." That is where, last night, I circled the wagons in order that we might square off. Post it again, right under the last comment, and there I will respond.
Another book I have to read...When the local leftists claim jihad is in response to American policy's, I ask them, outside Iraq, what policy's are you referring to, that upset Islam so much that jihadis are forced into action? I get a blank stare or get called a hate monger...In other words, they have no answers. Name calling and insults they got, answers, they don't. They are like McCain...'I respect the Islam, it has some good principals'.
A simpletons view. When asked what principals are those, another blank stare, they don't know.
These people are mentally 'closed up'. They are a heart with no head, and I am not so sure about the heart. They need to read the Al-Qaeda Reader and RS books, but I doubt that they will, ignorance is bliss...
Hijacking Islam with islamic scripture, cagey bastards
Pretty pathetic that it took so long to get this sort of basic compilation of our worst enemy's ideology out there.
The book is split into two parts, "Theology" and "Propaganda."
The second half is boring, since it's the messages Osama and his ilk always intended America and the West to hear.
The first half is very different. It simply must be read by any and every American who has any interest in this so-called War on Terror. Bin Laden and Zawahiri are meticulous, determined to demonstrate and prove that their message is simply one of being "good Muslims."
Consider this excerpt from one essay, written or authorized by bin Laden as an open letter (in Arabic) to Saudis--not the West:
One last note: Victor Davis Hanson's introduction to the book is weak. In his simplistic world view, there are only two choices: "see war" and "mobilize the military to defeat an all-embracing ideology of existential enemies," or employ the "criminal justice system" against "sporadic and uncoordinated attacks, predicated on local, unrelated grievances." Doesn't this oh-so-great scholar of history realize that military war is but one of many approaches to defeat totalitarian ideologies?
traeh - when we send the copies of Mr. Spencer's new book.. I'm going to include a copy of this work as well. My Rep. will be getting two books.
It should be beyond question that AQ's desire to undo us has never had anything to do with our foreign policy. After all, it was largely b/c of our weaponry, generously provided by the CIA, that the taliban & associated tribes were able to throw the Russians out of Afghanistan in the 1980's. Yet they repaid us with 9/11. Our foreign policy is absolutely irrelevant to their hatred toward us.
Shameful that 6 years after 9/11 our society is still in such a state of confusion and our polit-apes still haven't done a thing to stop Islamic migration into our lands.
Fitzgerald-
Ordered it as a gift too. Your influence counts.
Shipping estimate for these items: October 1, 2007
Delivery estimate: October 4, 2007 - October 8, 2007 1 "The Al Qaeda Reader"
Raymond Ibrahim; Hardcover; $17.16
Sold by: Amazon.com
"Never have so few done so little and endangered so many."
The way Churchill would have assessed the damnable derelection of duty of our current "leaders" in the face if imperialistic Islam.
Koran, what Koran?
Open it?
I didn't know it opened?
This is a GREAT article. Spencer and this site have done so much to strip away the myth that terrorism and violent jihad are not the real Islam. To the contrary, it is pure Islam.
What Ibrahim's article does is take away the second myth so dear to the hearts of our own media and leftarded academics and dhimmicrats--the idea that terrorism is rooted in poverty and oppression perpetrated upon colonized countries by the evil capitalist Imperialist West in general and USA in particular.
AQ knows our Left so well they actually do their work for them, spoon-feeding them the "propaganda of reciprocity" they need like an addict needs cocaine. And all the while, "laughing in celebration" when they see it broadcast all over the world by our commentators and politicians.
So, to some it up again for our thickheaded friends:
1. The terrorists ARE the real Islam.
2. They hate us because of who we are, not what we've done.
Sorry...
...to SUM it up...
I've added this book to my list of resources at TheVictoryProject.org, an online action tank of suggested concrete steps that people around the world can take to help defeat the jihadists. Please visit the site and share your good ideas.
Thanks for the reminder. This book is on the must-read list. It was featured two weeks ago on C-SPAN2, After Words program.
Kudos to Robert for your new book.
Every government official, every FBI agent, every DHS bureaucrat should have Raymond Ibrahim's book
I second that, wholeheartedly, along with a lot of other books, especially Spencer's. But there is hardly a chance of that to ever happen, because the Bush/Condi/Cheney crew is dyslexic from bottom to top.
And the horror is that the opposition is far worse!
Stop the planet, I wanna get off!
"And the horror is that the opposition is far worse!" says sheik yer'mami
Ain't that the truth! As clueless as GW and his gang have been, the Dhimmicrats are far worst. They are hell bent on appeasing Islam no matter the cost.