Great article about the rage and anger felt by young Muslims........

[Real American]

I hate the New York Times, but this commentary raises alot of good points...



A poverty of dignity and a wealth of rage
 
 
 
THOMAS L. FRIEDMAN         
New York Times

 
 
 A few years ago I was visiting Bahrain and sitting with friends in a fish restaurant when news appeared on an overhead TV about Muslim terrorists, men and women, who had taken hostages in Russia. What struck me, though, was the instinctive reaction of the Bahraini businessman sitting next to me, who muttered under his breath, “Why are we in every story?” The “we” in question was Muslims.

The answer to that question is one of the most important issues in geopolitics today: Why are young Sunni Muslim males, from London to Riyadh and Bali to Baghdad, so willing to blow up themselves and others in the name of their religion? Of course, not all Muslims are suicide bombers; it would be ludicrous to suggest that.

 
 
But virtually all suicide bombers, of late, have been Sunni Muslims. There are a lot of angry people in the world. Angry Mexicans. Angry Africans. Angry Norwegians. But the only ones who seem to feel entitled and motivated to kill themselves and totally innocent people, including other Muslims, over their anger are young Sunni radicals. What is going on?

Neither we nor the Muslim world can run away from this question any longer. This is especially true when it comes to people like Muhammad Bouyeri—a Dutch citizen of Moroccan origin who last year tracked down the Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh, a critic of Islamic intolerance, on an Amsterdam street, shot him 15 times and slit his throat with a butcher knife. He told a Dutch court on the final day of his trial on Tuesday: “I take complete responsibility for my actions. I acted purely in the name of my religion.”

Clearly, several things are at work. One is that Europe is not a melting pot, and has never adequately integrated its Muslim minorities, who, as The Financial Times put it, often find themselves “cut off from their country, language and culture of origin” without being assimilated into Europe, making them easy prey for peddlers of a new jihadist identity.

Also at work is Sunni Islam’s struggle with modernity. Islam has a long tradition of tolerating other religions, but only on the basis of the supremacy of Islam, not equality with Islam. Islam’s self-identity is that it is the authentic and ideal expression of monotheism. Muslims are raised with the view that Islam is God 3.0, Christianity is God 2.0, Judaism is God 1.0 and Hinduism is God 0.0.

Part of what seems to be going on with these young Muslim males is that they are, on the one hand, tempted by secular Western society, and ashamed of being tempted. On the other hand, they are humiliated by Western society because while Sunni Islamic civilization is supposed to be superior, its decision to ban the reform and reinterpretation of Islam since the 12th century has choked the spirit of innovation out of Muslim lands, and left the Islamic world less powerful, less economically developed, less technically advanced than God 2.0, 1.0 and 0.0.

This is not about the poverty of money. This is about the poverty of dignity and the rage it can trigger.

One of the London bombers was married, with a young child and another on the way. I can understand, but never accept, suicide bombing in Iraq or Israel as part of a nationalist struggle. But when a British Muslim citizen, nurtured by that society, just indiscriminately blows up his neighbours and leaves behind a baby and pregnant wife, to me he has to be in the grip of a dangerous cult or preacher—dangerous to his faith, community and to the world.

How does that happen? Britain’s Independent described one of the bombers, Hasib Hussain, as having undergone a sudden conversion “from a British Asian who dressed in Western clothes to a religious teenager who wore Islamic garb and only stopped to say salaam to fellow Muslims.”

The secret of this story is in that conversion—and so is the crisis in Islam. The people and ideas that brought about that sudden conversion of Hasib Hussain and his pals—if not stopped by other Muslims—will end up converting every Muslim into a suspect and one of the world’s great religions into a cult of death.

New York Times

 

[Real American]

The following paragraph I think is 100% accurate:



"Part of what seems to be going on with these young Muslim males is that they are, on the one hand, tempted by secular Western society, and ashamed of being tempted. On the other hand, they are humiliated by Western society because while Sunni Islamic civilization is supposed to be superior, its decision to ban the reform and reinterpretation of Islam since the 12th century has choked the spirit of innovation out of Muslim lands, and left the Islamic world less powerful, less economically developed, less technically advanced than God 2.0, 1.0 and 0.0.

This is not about the poverty of money. This is about the poverty of dignity and the rage it can trigger. "

[J Bananas]

Great article. I think that type of mentality has been developed by many people in reguards to different situations, not just in being muslim. Very honest look.

[UAK]

If whitey would leave the Arab world alone it would be all good 

Thanks for the breaking news.

[Sikotic™]

What the fuck is this? The writer makes a big deal about Muslims thinking their religion is superior to all other religions? No shit, everyone thinks that their own particular religion is superior to the others. That is such a ridiculous point & in my eyes it makes the rest of the article void. I only read to that point, anyways.

Maybe, just maybe, they're blowing themselves up and risking life and limb because there's no hope. America and it's allies kepp imposing their will and self interest and they can't fight back. A man killing himself with a wife and kids shows desperation to me. Whatever.

[Real American]

What the fuck is this? The writer makes a big deal about Muslims thinking their religion is superior to all other religions? No shit, everyone thinks that their own particular religion is superior to the others. That is such a ridiculous point & in my eyes it makes the rest of the article void. I only read to that point, anyways.

Maybe, just maybe, they're blowing themselves up and risking life and limb because there's no hope. America and it's allies kepp imposing their will and self interest and they can't fight back. A man killing himself with a wife and kids shows desperation to me. Whatever.

All religions might believe their beliefs are superior, but Muslims are the only ones who subjugate people of other faiths. For example in the west, Christianity is the most practiced religion but we still live in a secular society with separation of church and state. All religions are equal before the law. In contrast, Islam dominates society and government in most of the Islamic world. For example, it is illegal to practice any religion but Islam in Saudi Arabia.

As for why people strap bombs to themselves and blow up innocent people, it is more than not having hope. Lots of people around the world might feel despair, but it is only Muslims commiting these terrorist acts. Besides, the 9/11 terrorists and the London terrorists weren't hopeless......they all came from good backgrounds.

As I told Tech, don't blame America and its allies. There are Muslims all over the world commiting these suicide bombings for dozens and dozens of reasons that have nothing to do with America. There is something unique about Islamic culture that causes this type of carnage, and it needs to be identified and stopped.

['EclipZe]

what a stupid racist article.

[Gangstauu]

If whitey would leave the Arab world alone it would be all good 

Thanks for the breaking news.

lmfao, u think the arab world will leave the "whitey world" alone?

[Shallow]

If whitey would leave the Arab world alone it would be all good 

Thanks for the breaking news.

All good? Never. As good? Maybe economically, but socially the Islamic world still has a lot of fixing up to do, like equal rights regarding women etc.

[Shallow]

If whitey would leave the Arab world alone it would be all good 

Thanks for the breaking news.

All good? Never. As good? Maybe economically, but socially the Islamic world still has a lot of fixing up to do, like equal rights regarding women etc.

That gives the U.S. the right to interfere with their politics, support corrupt governments, and help bring leaders like Saddam to power? Is that why the U.S. supports Saudi Arabia, and only mentions "equal rights" when it comes to countries like Iran aka non-allies? Get the fuck outta here with that bullshit "Islamic world has a lot of fixing up to do"... U.S foreign policy has a lot of cleaning up to do.

When did I say US was perfect? And when did I say the Western world has no cleaning up to do? I think I made it clear with my all good vs as good statement that no place is all good. I'm Canadian, and I'm pretty sure that human rights in Canada are a lot higher than Human rights in in the Islamic world. We aren't perfect here either, but we are better off socially, and not just because we aren't invaded by the US.

[Shallow]

If your response to the other guy's comment wasn't in context with the rest of the thread, then nevermind. I agree, there is no debate when it comes to human rights.

I'm glad we cleared that up. One thing I don't want to be confused with is a racist, pro-American no matter what, looney tune. I just wanted to tell the guy that even if the Arab world was free of White involvement they'd still have huge social problems that they would need to fix.

Look at those places in Africa where rumours spread that sex with a virgin cures aids and you have a bunch of fuck heads raping infants because they can be sure they are virgins, and it all started from some wacko shaman apparently, and the heads of the religion won't even come out and say it doesn't work. The Whites have fucked over Africa in a lot of ways but that fucked up mentality has nothing to do with it. It's like going back several hundred years and joining a witch hunt. The religions either have to step aside and not control the people so much or get a fucking clue and use at least a little logic. (For the record I am very religious. I just know my limits).