I have just arrived back in Secure Undisclosed Locationville on the mid-afternoon stagecoach. Yesterday I had a very fruitful day-long consultation at the United States Central Command in Tampa, Florida.
And now it is time to get to writing again. Waiting for me on my return to the Jihad Watch Towers was a contract from Regnery Publishing for a new book — a biography of the Prophet of Islam called The Truth About Muhammad.
For this book I will work strictly from Islamic sources in order to provide a portrayal of Muhammad the way mainstream Muslims regard him today. Of course, there are many worthy biographies of Muhammad available today. I don’t intend to duplicate or replace them. What I hope to do is address how the idea of the imitation of Muhammad affects Muslim behavior today, and what this reveals about the prospects for Islamic moderation and reform — the hope for which guides so much public policy nowadays.
I also have decided to write the book, despite the obvious risk, precisely because of that risk. I don’t want to live in a society in which people are afraid to state some obvious and simple truths for fear of violent retaliation.
Look for the book this fall.