"Friends, if we be honest with ourselves, we shall be honest with each other." - George Macdonald (1824-1905)

The Making of an Islamic Terrorist

How does an ordinary man like David Hicks become someone who fights for the Taliban? From the time Mr Hicks first met Muslims and attended a mosque to the time when he became convinced of the legitimacy of groups like the Taliban is the following topic. From my experience of talking with Muslim students from around the world, I imagine that his transformation would have happened something like this.

1. First of all when David first met Muslims he would not have been told "we want you to kill people and blow things up with us in the name of Allah." No, he would have probably been told that Islam means peace.
2. David would have seen something in the Islamic community that we seem to have little of in the western world. He would have seen a sense of community. The Muslim men pray together, sit and talk together, drinking coffee and enjoying Middle Eastern dishes together. As a man it is good to be with other men, there is a sense of friendship, something even stronger, 'mateship'.
3. They would have pointed out the obvious problems in the west. Though the west is advancing technologically it seems to be going backwards morally. One only needs to take a cursory look at the west to see that divorce is on the rise and that there are many problems associated with gambling and drinking alcohol. (Alcohol is forbidden in Islam.) Many of the social problems the west is facing have been largely avoided by the Islamic. This has happened in part because of a strong sense of community within Islam (which David would have felt and seen). The west is also financially immoral. Banks charge interest and people are unable to make the repayments (Muslim cannot loan money at interest); share holders seem only interested in profits, not in doing what is right[1]. Of course the Islamic world has problems but David would have been told that they are not the result of Islam, those problems are caused by western nations and western corporations. (And of course, everyone knows who is controlling the world, the Jews. It usually doesn’t take long before the Jews are blamed.)
4. Over time David Hicks would have learnt more about the Sharia (Islamic law which is at the heart of Islam). Not only is justice done it is seen to be done. (No mention would be made of how non-Muslims must pay more tax than Muslims. No mentions are made that non-Muslims have to accept some restrictions on their freedom of speech when living under the Sharia. No mention would be made that in the event of a crime a non-Muslim's testimony is worth less than a Muslims or that the punishment for a non-Muslim is often different to that of a Muslim.)
5. So now David is convinced that Islam truly is the way. He has seen the strong sense of community amongst Muslims and the obvious problems caused by western immorality. He's convinced that the Sharia is what is best for society. But what can be done to bring it about?
6. He will be told that Islam is not violent, "we don’t want to fight, we invite people to Islam."
7. "But what if they don't listen? What if they reject Allah and his prophet and prefer to drink, gamble, cheat, lie and steal?" David would have been told that if they do not respond to the obvious beauty of Islam and the Quran it may be permissible to implement the Sharia by force . (Communists have done a similar kind of thing in the past. Believing their cause is what is best they become convinced that it is necessary to fight for it.) It is tough and it is a shame that force may have to be used but those who are non-Muslims now will be thankful once it is all over and everyone is living under the Sharia. Once they are brought to the point where they submit to Allah and acknowledge Mohammed as his prophet, observing the 5 pillars of Islam, they will be grateful that men were brave enough to fight so that society can have order and justice. Just like a little child who doesn't want to have a needle, sometimes it is necessary to do that which others will resist, but they will thank you later. Now this would have been the time when they would have shown a man like David some specially selected verses from the Quran and parts of the Hadith (Islamic traditions) as well as some of Mohammed's letters to the people and nations around him. (What kind of verses might David have been shown? They are easy to find if you take the time to look into it.)  [2]

The real danger from Islamic extremists comes not from those who choose to achieve their goals by way of gun and explosives; the real danger comes from extremists who try to reach their objectives through political lobbying and by persuading the media. (Unfortunately, there are many involved in this pursuit. See Londonistan by Melanie Phillips) The extremist who wears the guise of a harmless business man, academic or student is the most dangerous kind of all because he is trying to achieve his ends through deception and stealth.

I have never heard a Muslim oppose the Sharia (Islamic law). I've heard many Muslims say that groups like the Taliban implemented a perversion of it but then they go on to defend Islamic law. But that's the problem isn't it? Every Muslim seems to think that if only society adopted his or her version of the Sharia society would be great. As well intentioned as they may be they are misguided. The real issue is not what kind of law we as individuals might like to see society adopt; the real issue is what kind of system of government would be best for a society to adopt (or keep). The only options that I know of are forms of democracy, communism or totalitarianism. (We can measure how fair a system is by the way minorities and those with dissenting views are treated.) If the Sharia guaranteed equality for everyone in society (no matter what they claimed to believe) and provided true freedom of speech (which would include the freedom to critique Holy books such as the Bible and the Quran) as well as the freedom to change one’s beliefs (freedom of conscience), then I could accept that the Sharia was something other than totalitarianism in disguise. (See Islamic Imperialism by Efraim Karsh, professor of history)

Note: Many Muslims think that the only choices they have regarding government are between a secular humanist government, communist government or the Sharia (Islamic law). They reject communism because of atheism and they reject secular humanism because of the immorality they see in the west, which really only leaves them with one choice. But I think there is another option we should consider if we are serious about peace and stability in this world. See The message

Perhaps if David Hicks had of read things like the following before he became heavily involved he might not have done what he did. See hoaxes and Islam's best argument

[1] Among the serious problems we have today is the coming energy crisis and trade issues which must be addressed. But I don't believe these will be the biggest issues we will be faced with this century. (America has a vision for the world, but we must not forget, so does Saudi Arabia. The Saudi's have spent 10's of billions of dollars promoting Wahhabism.).

Because of the many problems in the west today certain voices have become very popular within the Islamic community. One of these voices is Michael Moore's. The problem with Michael Moore is he is half right. If you pride yourself on thinking critically and you wish to find out which half is right I recommend the book (with the unfortunate title) Michael Moore is a Big Fat Stupid White Man. Michael Moore appeals to us because we know that government representatives often lie (If you are interested in this I recommend the chapters "Government Cover-Ups" & "Government Conspiracies" in Lights in the Sky and Little Green Men by Ross, Samples and Clark. The authors don't actually believe in little green men they are merely addressing some of the theories about government that some people put forward.) 9/11 Myths are also spreading in the Islamic world and the west. See Debunking 9/11 Myths by David Dunbar.

[2] If you think this same process from tolerance to violence could be pursued with any convert to any religion consider this: Does the convert’s new religion have a fixed law for the government which impacts both believers and non-believers? (Can such a law be found in the Buddhist texts or in the New Testament?) Are texts such as the New Testament or those which Buddhists or Hindus refer to easily used to incite fighting against non-believers? (It seems we are hard pressed to find Buddhist or Christian suicide bombers or find something that compares to the Islamist demands. For example, did the IRA demand that England live under Catholic rule? Clearly there is no comparison between the Islamists and everyone else.)

We only need to look at the world around us to see how beliefs influence behaviour. Beliefs have the power to restrain or incite. If someone burns down your house and all of your friends tell you not to take the law into your own hands, and you believe that what they are saying is right even though you might feel like killing those who destroyed your property, then your belief and their words will have a restraining effect on your behaviour. If however, your friends are of the opinion that you should take the law into your own hands and you agree with them then those beliefs will incite revenge. Notice that the circumstances are exactly the same only the beliefs are different and these beliefs lead to very different outcomes. The question we need to be asking is, "Does Islam inflame the worst in people or does it restrain it?" From what I see on the news I am not encouraged. What are moderates doing to change the minds of extremists? 

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Only the truth can set a person free. Only the truth can set the extremist free from the ideology which holds him.

"The truth will set you free"

In the movie "The Matrix" Morpheus says to Neo,

"Neo you must understand, there's a difference between knowing the path and walking the path."

There is a difference between knowing the truth and living the truth. Knowing the truth is not enough, it won't set you free until you live it.

Further thoughts

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