But wait — the mainstream media, government officials, and Muslim spokesmen in the West constantly tell us that bin Laden twisted and hijacked Islam, distorting its true, peaceful teachings. How could an “introspective Muslim scholar who argued his points by using sayings of the prophet Muhammad” do that? Why do so many other “introspective Muslim scholars” misunderstand Islam in exactly the same way?
“A lion in winter,” by David Ignatius for the Washington Post, March 18 (thanks to David):
…This was the lion in winter: Bin Laden was hidden in a compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, pacing in his courtyard, watching television, dictating messages to his wives. He was at once a worldly man, trying to run a global terror network, and an introspective Muslim scholar who argued his points by using sayings of the prophet Muhammad or citing battles waged by the prophet’s associates….