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Patrick Boylan is the courageous and clear-thinking gentleman who caused a stir last year at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas' Institute of Security Studies by daring to speak the truth about the causes of Islamic terrorism. I had the honor to spend some time with him several months ago when I spoke in Las Vegas, and was impressed by the breadth of his knowledge of Islam and the jihad ideology -- knowledge born both of study and personal experience, as he grew up in Pakistan.
I have deleted the references to place in this article for a variety of reasons; suffice it to say that this piece appeared in an American newspaper, and that this course is being taught in an American university -- which is heartening news.
“Know your enemy.”That’s the lesson Patrick Boylan intends to impress on over 40 students enrolled in [... ] University’s new four-year Homeland Security program.
And because the United States hasn’t made it a point to get to know the terrorist enemy they face, Boylan – Paddy as he likes to be called – worries the government won’t succeed in the global war on terror.
“The book talks about a sophisticated global terrorism aimed at America,” Boylan told his second class of the morning on Friday, pointing out what he considers flaws in their public policy textbook’s chapter on homeland security. “What’s wrong with that statement?”
No, it’s not the word sophisticated, and it’s not the word global, he told his 13 students during the ensuing discussion. Finally, he heard the answer he sought; that terrorism isn’t aimed solely at Americans.
“We shouldn’t think we’re so important that it’s only against us,” he confirmed in his unique, clipped brogue, reminiscent of his Irish father.
Leading a brand-new program, instituted [...] as one of three possible baccalaureate degree programs, Boylan said he appreciates the opportunity to build the homeland security department from the ground up. He also hopes that when he’s graduated the program’s first class of students, he’ll have provided the world and the country with future security experts who not only know who their enemy is, but won’t be afraid to say so.
“On some levels the government doesn’t tell us the truth,” said [...] a student [...] who’s already earned an associate’s degree in law enforcement. “And they try to be all politically correct and neutral.”
“They don’t realize we have to take sides and we will offend some people,” agreed [...] a 20-year-old [...] student from St. Francisville, Ill. “We have to be politically incorrect.”
An important lesson to learn, says Boylan, who, like the fictitious teacher in the late 80s film Dead Poets Society, above all plans to challenge his students to question authority and think for themselves.
“We have to change the way we think,” said Boylan. “It’s the old saying, you must send a thief to catch a thief. We don’t think like them so we don’t understand what motivates them, but we must learn to.”
Joking that he’s the only Irish-Catholic Jew ever to be born in a Muslim country, Boylan speaks only in generalities about his past, saying he’s received several death threats from different groups who don’t like what he believes and says about Islam. A former geologist, the middle-aged professor appears in excellent condition, says he grew up in countries that breed terrorism, and speaks with humor about a subject he believes is deadly serious.
“I’ve been writing about terrorism and counter-terrorism since long before it was cool,” he laughed, sitting in his new office [...]. “They told us for years this was coming – the Mujadin in Afghanistan used to say today the Russians, the Americans tomorrow.”
To him, statements like that, and studying the Quran, the text by which many Muslims live – and die - offered plenty of warning that not only the United States, but every non-Muslim in the world is a target. To him, it’s pretty darn simple, and he can’t understand why Western intelligence services insist on trying to pursue and defeat the enemy as if this were traditional warfare, and the enemy a common criminal, one mistake he doesn’t plan to make.“This is an amazing opportunity to develop a homeland security program and do it right,” said Boylan, who earned a Master’s degree in the discipline at an American university. “This won’t be just glorified criminal justice.”
[...] [S]tudents are apparently attracted to the subject, as the department has drawn more students than the university’s other four-year degree programs now offered in technology and health care. “It’s the strongest of the three by far,” said [...] [the] dean of Boylan’s division. “We were lucky to get him because there’s not a lot of people in this area yet with a good background in this field, and a degree.”
So the fact that Boylan arrived [...] just two weeks before school started was a blessing [...] “We originally thought it would be excellent if we started with 25 or 30 in the program, and we started with over 40,” he said.
All of the students, along with Boylan, have also now gained university support for a field trip of sorts. During the fall break in mid-October, the homeland security division will travel to New Orleans, set up a base at Camp Indiana – where the state’s police, conservation officers and emergency management support team camp – and learn first-hand what it’s like to deal with the aftermath of devastation; the same kind that could come with a terrorist attack or a tornado.
“Unfortunately, the scenario offers my students a living laboratory,” Boylan said. “What better place for them to learn than where Katrina hit.”
Especially since Boylan is pretty vocal about the failings of every level of security in and around New Orleans, from the local level on up. He scoffs at blaming the president alone, or recently resigned Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Michael Brown. To him, the problems began at the local level and continued to the top, and “Bush was not the only one at fault.”
The problem, he said, is that for too many federal employees, protecting the country from disasters natural or not, is just a job. They have a plan that doesn’t work, and they don’t think about why it won’t work until it’s too late, he said. Meanwhile,though a number of officials at the state and federal level have taken responsibility for the mistakes made in the Gulf Region, Boylan asks whether that helps those who suffered, or assures citizens that they truly are secure.
“I personally don’t believe the government knows what it’s doing, because you can’t fight an enemy you don’t know,” he said. “Right now the terrorists are laughing at us, and anyone can see we can’t respond to a multiple city attack when we couldn’t handle the situation in the south.”
That’s why he challenges his students to think, and think outside the box of accepted policy. Because American policy he tells them is quick to lay blame at home, rather than admit and regroup to fight an enemy taught to slaughter those who aren’t Muslims; who are, by their reckoning, infidels.
“In junior high I studied the writings of Malcolm X and looked into the Nation of Islam,” admitted [a student] who also said while he studied Islam for brief time, today he remains a proud Catholic. “The structure is very tight-knit and parts of the Quran teach them to kill others but not to attack each other. A Muslim doesn’t go after a Muslim. We need to understand they’re not a bunch of crazies.”
And until the western world admits and accepts it’s a religious war and not a political one, especially not one to blame themselves for, events like Sept. 11 and the London subway bombings will continue, according to Boylan.
“Number one we have to understand that Jihad is a religious obligation, and we have a lack of knowledge about who they are and what they’re fighting for,” he explained. “Racial profiling was the biggest mistake ever, because it’s not racial, it’s religious.”
But when his students graduate they will fill the void in a wide-open career field now being stymied, in his opinion, by antiquated ideas and tactics. The students and future leaders of homeland security will have the knowledge, experience and understanding to better protect their families and their communities even if they decide to become police officers, firefighters or work on the federal level. And since he believes that anthrax and other biological weapons are unlikely to be used, his students will learn why.
“They won’t use what they think will hurt their people,” he said. “And they’re done with planes. Where is there no security now? In subways, and that’s what happened in London.”
Believing as he does, that current homeland security policy is no policy at all, but just a way of “ripping off the taxpayer,” Boylan hopes his students will be willing to tell the truth. Because without truth, there is no security, he said.
“I hope to join FEMA or another federal agency so I can make a difference,” said [...] a military police officer [...] now studying under Boylan and helping organize their trip to Louisiana. “It’s there we can change the perceptions, and if a failure exists in planning, we can do what’s right.”
Posted by Robert at September 24, 2005 11:01 AM
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Wonderful, may his numbers increase. One thing...how long until CAIR files a lawsuit?
Posted by: Carolyn2![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.jihadwatch.org/nav-commenters.gif)
at September 24, 2005 11:44 AM
I agreed with just about everything Paddy said here, except this part: “The structure is very tight-knit and parts of the Quran teach them to kill others but not to attack each other. A Muslim doesn’t go after a Muslim. We need to understand they’re not a bunch of crazies.” Tell that to the Shia.
Posted by: Jauhara Al-Kafirah at September 24, 2005 12:05 PM
I'm surprised he hasn't been slammed by the multi-Kulti campus crowd yet. There must be a fair contingent of non-Leftist thinking on his campus.
Posted by: Gary at September 24, 2005 12:16 PM
At last a breath of "fresh air" on the college campuses. Boylan has my support and now I am
not as embarrassed to say that I am a college graduate with all the leftist idiots dominating the scene.
at September 24, 2005 12:39 PM
I have been saying this for years now on how important it is to understand the enemy we face. "you need to define your enemy to be able to defeat him, But you must also be able to define yourself to defeat the enemy as well".
One cannot defeat an enemy if he does not understand what he is trying to protect and preserve.
As you watch todays antiwar movement on C Span, what becomes abundantly clear is that there is no direct focus on their cause,but instead as it has always been; there is a focus on many unrelated causes that have nothing to do with the war in Iraq.
Clearly there are so many anti American groups with so many anti American agendas that their cause celeb almost gets drowned out by them.
From the speakers that talk of the poor,uneducated blacks of New Orleans (apparently they have no schools for blacks in New Orleans) and of course that is President Bush's fault, even though he has more than tripled the federal investment into public schools from the Clinton Administration.
And then there is Mahdi Bray calling for muslims, Jews, and christians to work for peace together while at the same time telling this gullible group that he stands strong and will not compromise his Islamic beliefs. And those of us that study this and learn from sites like jihadwatch know that he does not speak the truth at all and his actions have borne this out over the years.
One cannot be sure how the pro-Bush gathering sunday;which will be shown on C- Span, will play out, but I will bet that the speakers will have more and direct focus on what they are really defending then the anti war crowd did. They will know what, and why they are defending America and the free world in the face of the totalitarian Ideology that is Islam
Posted by: Mackie at September 24, 2005 2:46 PM
I agree with most except:
Our conventional idea of a country is based on geography. The idea of nation is not linked to religion as a common denomination.
However, for Muslims, the idea of nation is based on the idea of religion. Islam dreams of covering the entire world, and till that point of time, any country where Islam is not the mainstay religion, it is under 'occupation'. It is the duty of every Muslim to spread their religion.
This is the basic contradiction between democracy and Islam, in that both cannot co-exist. The demon that Islam is today, was unwittingly groomed by stupid Americans. They did not know who would be a worse enemy, the Russians or the Islamic fundamentalists. They partnered with the devil and are paying the price. They turned a blind eye on the evil camp that Pakistan was, in breeding terrorists. Americans also stupidly supported despots who ruled Pakistan during this time, who took money in the name of Afghanistan and profited in starting terror camps.
In conclusion, the contradiction between Islam and Democracy is not religious, though it stems from Islam. Islam is against democracy and tolerance. Islam is for a Unipolar world where the power will be in the hands of Muslims.
Posted by: Seculartalk at September 24, 2005 3:24 PM
I agree with most except:
Our conventional idea of a country is based on geography. The idea of nation is not linked to religion as a common denomination. We have countries like Kenya where people from many countries have settled and call themselves 'Kenyans' first.
However, for Muslims, the idea of nation is based on the idea of religion. Islam dreams of encompassing the entire world, and till that point of time, any country where Islam is not the mainstay religion, it is under 'occupation'. It is the duty of every Muslim to further this cause.
This is the basic contradiction between democracy and Islam, in that both cannot co-exist. The demon that Islam is today, was unwittingly nurtured and empowered by stupid Americans. They did not know who would turn to be a worse enemy, the Russians or the Islamic fundamentalists. They partnered with the devil and are paying the price. They refused to see the evil terrorist camp that Pakistan was, in breeding terrorists. Americans also stupidly supported despots who ruled Pakistan during this time, who took money in the name of Afghanistan and profited in starting terror camps.
In conclusion, the contradiction between Islam and Democracy is not religious, though it stems from Islam. Islam is against democracy and tolerance. Islam is for a Unipolar world where the power will be in the hands of Muslims.
Posted by: Seculartalk at September 24, 2005 3:29 PM
I agree with most except:
Our conventional idea of a country is based on geography. The idea of nation is not linked to religion as a common denomination. We have countries like Kenya where people from many countries have settled and call themselves 'Kenyans' first.
However, for Muslims, the idea of nation is based on the idea of religion. Islam dreams of encompassing the entire world, and till that point of time, any country where Islam is not the mainstay religion, it is under 'occupation'. It is the duty of every Muslim to further this cause.
This is the basic contradiction between democracy and Islam, in that both cannot co-exist. The demon that Islam is today, was unwittingly nurtured and empowered by stupid Americans. They did not know who would turn to be a worse enemy, the Russians or the Islamic fundamentalists. They partnered with the devil and are paying the price. They refused to see the evil terrorist camp that Pakistan was, in breeding terrorists. Americans also stupidly supported despots who ruled Pakistan during this time, who took money in the name of Afghanistan and profited in starting terror camps.
In conclusion, the contradiction between Islam and Democracy is not religious, though it stems from Islam. Islam is against democracy and tolerance. Islam is for a Unipolar world where the power will be in the hands of Muslims.
Posted by: Seculartalk at September 24, 2005 3:38 PM
Jauhara,
The quote you disagree with was not from Paddy but rather one of his students.
Posted by: Cornelius at September 24, 2005 7:13 PM
RE: The demon that Islam is today, was unwittingly nurtured and empowered by stupid Americans.
Islam hardly needed any "nurturing" from the USA.
Read the history of Islam and it has been Russia
that is formenting Islamic terrorism.
Read "Red Horizon"
But what has to be done is for America to define
the Islamic problem openly with the American people.
Read "America's Secret War" by Dr George Freidman
A lot is being done to counter Islamic terrorism
that most people are in the dark about.
at September 24, 2005 7:28 PM
God Bless Mr Boylan, Thanks Jihad Watch for bringing us this story, it gives Mr Boylan the recognition he deserves. I think that all of us who are members of JW & DW should extend to him our support and good wishes.
It is heartening for me to know that Mr Boylan is not alone, I just recently returned from a visit to my son's university in Massachusetts. while there I reviewed the text books that he is reading for his social sciences electives, and was amazed to find that it was an excellent book that went into great depth about the subject of slavery in the Arab world today. It was very clear that while slavery was abolished in the West quit some time ago, in the Muslim world it was still much alive and that the victims were black Christians forced to convert to Islam and who were abused and mistreated.
I will send the dean of his school a letter praising the quality of the materials used in my son's class.
It is important that we support those that chose to take the risk and fight for us in the realm of academia.
Wouldn't be great to create a fund that would support these brave people .
Posted by: thecid at September 25, 2005 12:33 AM
Knowing one's enemy SHOULD NOT be focused solely on terrorism or other violence. Importing millions of any immigrant culture whose culture is vastly different from one's own without insisting on assimilation is cultural suicide. Those immigrants and their friends in the homeland are the enemy.
The external Islamist enemy is counting on the fact that we are and remain our own worst enemy.
Posted by: epg at September 25, 2005 10:02 AM
I am most impressed with Boylan. America is at a critical juncture in its history. To surmount the jihad crisis we face presently, more of Boylan's calibre are urgently needed--and preferably in the highest echelons of our national government.
But I am baffled as to where this otherwise well-informed man got the notion that "one Muslim doesn't go after another Muslim."
The Qur'an does indeed empower and encourage Muslims to attack and kill other Muslims (usually in rival mosques). Mahomet himself did so. The schism and enmity between the Shia and Sunni Muslims as exemplified by the 1980s war between Iraq and Iran prove this as do innumerable other idiotic and horrifying examples throughout the Islamic world--and not just in the conquered "infidel" lands either.
An eye-opening, well-documented and high quality article just recently appeared in the Faith Freedom International website. It is titled "Islamic cannibalism" and exposes Islam's bloodthirst for Muslim blood. I highly recommend it as it exposes a little known aspect of Islamic history (and inhumanity).
And, Mr. Boylan asserts that Muslims AREN'T "a bunch of crazies." Oh, they're not?
They certainly had ME fooled.
Posted by: pythagoras at September 26, 2005 1:39 PM
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