There are a couple of things that deeply disturb me about the rising tide of anti-Muslim sentiment in the West, things that challenge the very core of my belief system.
Before I get to the point, remember, I am Jewish, and that's going to be central to the issue.
I also have a passionate belief in freedom, and both the rights and responsibilities that come with living in a free society. I've always held in the highest regard those words of Jefferson in the preamble to the American Constitution about an inalienable right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. To me, that translates into an easy philosophy... that we can all do whatever we feel like, on the proviso that in so doing, we don't impact directly on someone else's right to their own life, liberty and pursuit of happiness. (Note the emphasis on "directly". That's also central to the issue.)
With that set of core beliefs, I view the rise of anti-muslim sentiment, especially across Europe, as the new anti-semitism. It makes me very uncomfortable indeed. Try it, next time you read a newspaper article on 'those evil muslims'... replace muslim with "jew" and and a very dark evil re-emerges, all the more so because the people of Europe still hate the Jews. They just hate the Muslims even more.
However, there is one significant difference... the Jews do not proselytize. That is, they don't run around trying to convert everyone they meet to Judaism. Instead, we rather arrogantly proclaim that we're God's "chosen people", and unless you've been chosen by birth, we make things rather difficult (though not impossible) for you to enter the fold.
In Islam, you have an agressive faith which seeks to convert all whom it encounters, backed by a holy book that preaches deceipt, violence, war and intolerance as a way of life.
"Ah yes," I head you say, "isn't that what the Christians did during the Spanish Inquisition. Yes, I suppose it is, but with one significant difference... the New Testament largely preaches tolerance and peace (despite the violence and atrocities of the Spanish Inquisition). More importantly, it didn't single out anyone and preach a duty of violence against them.
Contrast that to the Koran, where hatred of non-believers is inscribed in the law, and where there is a holy duty to carry out that law. Contrast Judeo-Christian ethics with a holy book that holds up truth as a duty, but only between believers (in other words, among believers, you must be truthful, but when you deal with the non believers, it's ok to lie. Yes, that's what the book says!).
So how can I stand up and defend Islam against attacks that are looking more and more like the vile anti-semitism of old, when in doing so, I give impramateur to those who believe thay have a holy duty to kill me, and anyone else born under the Star of David?
And let's not forget that these are the same people who practice the vilest, most virulent, most deceiptful anti-semitism in history.
The bottom line is, such people don't want me to defend them. They don't want you to defend them either. They don't want to be "in dialogue" with you. They don't want to share your city or country in a spirit of tolerance that we, in the West, take for granted. They just want us dead... Jews, Christians, Hindus, Budhists... anyone who doesn't believe. They even want each other dead, in a factional war that makes the old Catholic/Protestant rivalry look like a schoolboy football match.
They view our quest for tolerance and peace as weakness and will exploit that weakness until their will is done. They understand nothing but the rule of an iron fist... anything less is fodder for their war.
Which brings me to the second part of my dilema.
The simple problem is that Western Civilisation has become weak. We lack the guts to stand up for ourselves, and for what we believe in.
I'm not talking about nations... I'm talking about you and me... the ordinary people... people who've become soft, who lead soft, all-too-easy lives and for whom political or philosophical debate is a chore. We're all far to pre-occupied with how long Paris spent in prison, or how much David and Posh paid for the LA residence, that we are about the things that really matter. All we care about is how soon we can have that new iPhone, or a new LCD TV.
We cower in the corner of political correctness, and fail dismally to stand up for what we believe. When we do, the bleating, bleeding hearts step up to intervene, makign us appear even weaker.
Finally, we have worthless, corrupt politicians who display a dismal lack of leadership, and who are more interested in winning the next election, or even the next opinion pole, than they are about making decisions for the good of future generations. There are no statesmen. There are no leaders other than those interested in their own power.
In short, we've become facile shadows of the extraordinary minds that made Western Civilisation great and prosperous... Descartes, Jefferson, Copernicus, and a very long line of others.
In a sense, we deserve our fate, because there are people out there with more passion and will to attack what we have than we currently have to defend it. We're throwing away 2000 years of of cultural legacy and if we don't change, it will be gone in our lifetimes.
9 comments:
Just asking, to clarify, but are you arguing that belief, religious belief, is necessary to fight this? Or, is believing in tolerance, respect and human dignity sufficient?
Thanks Mouse. I see why clarification is desirable.
No. I don't mean 'religious belief'. Which God you worship should be none of anyone elses business (unless you're a Satanist who runs around sacrificing children every Friday the 13th, which impacts on the sacrificee's right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness).
I'm saying we lack the passion to defend our core values. We lack the stomach for the fight. We lack an understanding that we are at war with a group of people who would prefer to see us dead, and as abhorrent as war might be, fighting it to win needs a total commitment to the cause.
We bleat on about "collateral damage", and "meaningful dialog" while our enemy cuts off heads on global TV.
In short, we fail to understand that to defend our values of peace, tolerance and freedom, we need to draw a line in the sand, and once drawn, we need to defend that line with every fibre of our spirit, and every means at our disposal.
I should add this, and it's something I've written in other posts but I'll repeat it justso we're all clear.
I believe the vast majority of muslims aer ordinary folk who just want to get along. As I've often said, people are just people to me, and I don't care what colour they are, or what creed they follow. Right up until the point where a holy book wants to see me dead, which is a twisted litteral interpretation that drives their more fanatical brethren.
Which is the root of the first dilema.
Ta for the clarification, I can now happily say I agree. The West, generally, has become soft, self centred and it does seem, passionless. Perhaps this "issue" may push some action. I've a fear though, that it will just encourage the fanatics from the other side.
I'm a little late to the party, but this is an issue pretty close to my heart as well...
I definitely think that our society has become weak, and agree with all the points Chester has raised. A good friend of mine shared an event with me that I think is relevant here... He was out in a neighbors yard with his son, and the neighbors dog. All of a sudden, the dog, which despite not knowing them, had welcomed them in, starts growling. My friend realizes that it's because another neighborhood kid has come into the yard.
Why the difference in the dog's demear you might ask? It turns out the kid is terrified of dogs. His theory is that because of that fear, the dog realizes that this kid would hurt him if given the chance and so it goes on the offensive.
I think a similar thing is happening in our society, we have been taught to fear others who have different beliefs, culture and view points. When we realize who we are and gain respect for those of opposing view points, I think most of the problems will evaporate.
This is of course far easier said than done, but I think it is possible.
Koda, I think your "fear of dogs" analogy is close. But winning this war has little to do with gaining respect for the opposing viewpoint. It simply has to do with having the strength not to second guess our own beliefes whenever we're threatened.
There was a dubious writer in the late Roman Empire, one Publius Flavius Vegetius Renatus, who wrote
Igitur qui desiderat pacem, praeparet bellum
or
If you want peace, prepare for war.
What he was saying was simple enough... only by having the means and will to defend yourself and wage war against those who would do you harm can you live in peace. Anything else is seen as weakness and you'll be crushed. It might not be civilised, but that's the way it is.
Most of the rest of his writing, by the way, were not of much interest to anyone, so it's entirely likely that there might have been a little plagiarism in the works of Publius Flavius Vegetius Renatus because the brilliance of this insight isn't displayed anywhere else.
I kind of agree with you... Without exception though (unless you can point one out...) the history of war seems to be one where the cause has been 1 group trying to impose a specific idealogy or belief system on another.
The Crusaders wanted to impose Christianity, the Taliban wanted Islamic Law, The Nazi's wanted their perverted views propogated, even down to the US, imposing freedom (of course that is kind of a contradiction!!)
I agree wholeheatedly that you need to stick to your beliefs and not back down. The problem is when you try and impose those beliefs on another.
Of course the problem that is faced in the Middle East is a religeon which focuses on submission to a higher power being guided by misguided men, and I'm not sure how to help them see the folly of their ways.
I join you in applauding Wafa Sultan as I think it will be through people like here, rather than corrupt politicians in DC that this conflict will be resolved.
Post a Comment