I don't think the majority of people read this magazine. It would be really troublesome if they do. Many readers are going to go away thinking ISIS is really a version of Islam. It isn't.
What ISIS wants is to bring on the apocalypse as foretold in the Quran. Given time it will get the first half of its wish but I doubt the second half will materialize. In that first part, they will get destroyed and end of story till another try. Pretty much like Christian cults waiting for the end of the world which never came.
With ISIS destroyed militarily and territories reconquered their caliphate will temporarily come to an end.
The problem though would not go away until Salafists are given opportunities to practice their beliefs, and in my view be disillusioned by them. There is no learning this except by the hard way.
Even if Baghdadi is killed they will find another Qureshi eventually to take his place. Then if ever we are careless, fight the next generation of ISIS all over again. They will keep trying to bring on the End of Days until enough Muslims get fed up with it because it is not happening and give up supporting them. This will pave the way for a more patient and co-existing with others Islam. The written word of their faith wouldn't have changed of course, but they will be understood differently.
Their holy writings describe a military Armageddon with Muslims as protagonists. This is the opposite of Revelation in the Bible which the Christians/Jews will be hunted and killed. Some crazies will always entertain "forcing God's hands" by initiating the sequence of events leading to the End of the World.
Global events must flow in such a way that some of these believers do not read them as signs of the coming of the End or else this problem of Muslim related terrorism will keep reigniting. How Israel currently conduct itself in that region is a real problem too. World leaders must understand Islamic prophecies and act to create a different environment which these religion terrorists cannot find the tea leaves they seek auguring the End of the World.
And what if we fail? This problem will get worse and if the terrorists have more stamina than the rest of us they will keep at it until it is really the End. A very bloody end quite like their book.
Update: Feb 23 10:55 am
There will be more of such. The quiescent Muslim majority are self organizing and responding because tipping point of watching and not doing much is over. Similarly non-Muslims will also come together to protect their minority Muslims as appropriate.
No reason to be pessimistic. End of the World? That's not our business. Don't interfere with the Divine. Have some respect, even fear for him.
Don't want "The World to End?" Then don't act to produce those signs so that none of the apocalyptic faiths would cue from them and act stupidly.
By now u should smell the devil
ReplyDeleteBut then its hard if u even ignore simple thing such as
Good vs evil
Salafism is the path to ISIL. It is like the bird flu virus can mutate into a form harmful to us. Salafism is risky but not evil until it turns into the ISIL. Just like you allow a Gremlin to touch water and all hell breaks loose.
DeleteI made a mistake in my Sep 2014 post on ISIL because I forgot territory is needed for a caliphate. It was a stupid mistake as I always knew the Taiping kingdom also needed to hold territory. See http://blogging4myself.blogspot.sg/2014/09/isil-me-version-of-taiping-rebellion.html
Just as the Qing government shifted from treating the Taiping rebels as bandits to rebels, the nations of the ME and Muslims everywhere are increasingly turning against them. Note that Taiping was also apocalyptic.
The article above by The Atlantic magazine is playing with fire suggesting that Islam can be seen at its core as evil.
Good vs Evil is not simple. That is shallow and foolish because evil always uses good to legitimize and sell itself. We just saw the outcome of that not too long ago in Paris.
Yes, nothing is simple. In the age-old tussle between good and evil, it is more helpful if we can spot the good in the evil person or act or more so, the evil in the good person or act. Deception is the name of the game.
ReplyDelete1984 is very much here. The latest - Big Barbie is Watching You – Meet the WiFi Connected Barbie Doll that Talks to Your Children and Records Them
ReplyDeletehttp://libertyblitzkrieg.com/2015/02/23/the-internet-of-things-meet-the-wifi-connected-barbie-doll-that-talks-to-your-children-and-records-them/